In Their Shadows
by nebula2
Summary: It's Percy Weasley's first year at Hogwarts. What does it have in store from them. Don't own the Harry Potter characters I'm just borrowing them.
1. Chapter 1

_**Bill's POV:**_

I sat at the kitchen table that evening with the Head Boy badge sitting in front of me. Over by the window my new owl, Lighting, was perched next to Errol, the family owl. I was so happy that I had gotten the badge. Ever since I had been made a Prefect, becoming Head Boy my seventh year had been my goal. It was nice to know all that hard work had payed off. I was now the first Hogwarts Headboy in my family!

An explosion of some kind came from upstairs but no one in my family jumped. We were use to it by now. It was just my ten-year-old twin brothers goofing off in their room. As it was not followed by any yells or shrieks, we knew nobody had been hurt.

"Maybe I shouldn't let Ginny stay up there with them," I heard Mom mutter through the pins in here hands. She was busy trying to get some of my old robes to fit my brother Percy. This was going to be Percy's first year at Hogwarts but he hadn't seemed all that excited about it.

Percy always had been the quiet one of the family but since getting our Hogwarts letters he had seemed quieter than usual. I was wondering if he was feeling nervous about going away from home. I knew Mom was having a harder time letting him go than she had Charlie and I but then she always had been protective of Percy. I figured it was partially because he was more timid than the rest of us and probably got teased more than any of the rest of us. The twins especially liked to tease him. Percy was also small, even for his age, which made Mom trying to fit him to my old robes kind of comical. Even though they were my first set of robes, they were still way too big and made Percy look smaller than he really was.

My other two brothers were sitting at the table with me. Seven-year-old Ron, who was a year older than Ginny, the baby of the family, sat at the end of the table. He had Percy's pet rat, Scabbers, out and was playing with him. Charlie, my sixteen-year-old brother, sat across from me. His head was buried in a book, and had been since we had gotten back from Diagon Alley, which was unusual. Percy was the bookworm of the family. I didn't ever remember seeing Charlie read anything voluntarily. Ducking my head, I tried to figure out what it was he was reading.

_Quidditch Tactics and Coaching Techniques, _the cover of the book read.

I shook my head. I should've known. Ever since he was little, Charlie had lived and breathed Quidditch. He had made the Gryffindor team as a Chaser in his second year the same year I had made the team as a beater. The only reason I had even tried out was because of Charlie. I liked Quidditch but it wasn't the most important thing in my life. In his fourth year, Charlie became the team's seeker as the old one had graduated. Last year, his fifth year, he had not only made Prefect but had also been named Quidditch Captain. I think the title Quidditch Captain had meant more to Charlie than being made a Prefect, much to our mother's disappointment. I was happy for him, even though it had meant I had to listen to all the jokes about my younger brother being Captain of the team.

Gryffindor hadn't loss a game since Charlie had joined the team. That was a four year winning streak. Needless to say, hopes were high. I was starting to think Charlie was feeling the pressure.

"Quidditch practice doesn't start until October," I reminded him.

"What?" Charlie said looking up from the book.

"You've got a month to prepare for the upcoming season. What's with the cramming all of a sudden."

"Because I just realized that with the exception of you, me and Derek Finnigan we've got to recruit a whole new team this year. That's four new people and everyone's expecting us to win again."

"Technically you've got to recruit new people, and its really only three. Rob Wood's a good Chaser. He's done a great job when he's played filled in for an injured player. He definitely should be on the team."

"Yeah, well that still leaves me a Beater and two Chasers to find before the start of the season not to mention getting us working as a team. A month seems too short."

"Relax will you. This is our last evening of freedom before going back to school. Enjoy it."

"But he doesn't have a Head Boy badge to admire all night," Fred said as he and George came down the steps. Evidently whatever they had been doing in their room had lost their interest. Ginny, my six-year-old sister, was slowly coming down the steps behind them. When she wasn't with Percy, she could usually be found hanging out with the twins. Mom worried they would have a bad influence on her especially with Percy going away to school.

"You two will be lucky to even make it into Hogwarts," I shot back at them.

"If they took Percy, they'll take us," Fred said. "Where is Percy anyway?" he said looking around the room like he hadn't seen Percy standing on the stool in front of Mom.

"There he is, Fred," George said pointing to him, as he went along with Fred's joke.

"Oh sorry. Didn't see you there. Those robes just swallow you."

Percy's face went pink. He always had been sensitive about his size, and the twins knew it.

"Yeah, I think they'd fit a house elf better," George piped in.

Percy stepped off the stool and started after the twins. Mom grabbed for him but missed him. The twins tore off upstairs, laughing. Percy started chasing after him, got up three steps, tripped on the front of the robes, which Mom hadn't gotten around to pinning yet, and fell.

The twins stopped at the top of the stairs, turned and kept laughing. Ron and Ginny were laughing as was Charlie who had looked up from his book. I was struggling not to laugh myself. Percy was sitting up on the stairs, his chin scrapped up from where he fell. I could see tears glistening in his eyes and the urge to laugh disappeared. I kicked Charlie under the table to get him to quit.

"Percy, are you okay" Mom said rushing over to him.

"Are you too short to make it up the stairs," Fred called down from where he stood.

"CUT IT OUT YOU TWO AND GO TO YOUR ROOM."

Knowing what Mom was like when she got angry, the twins hightailed it out of sight.

"AND YOU THREE QUIT LAUGHING," she yelled turning to look at Charlie, Ron and Ginny.

Ron and Ginny quit right away. Charlie tried, started again and hid his face in his book, probably hoping Mom wouldn't notice.

"Let me see how bad it is," Mom said turning back to Percy. She cupped his chin in her hand and tilted his head up so she could see better.

"Mom, I'm fine," Percy told her as she pressed a handkerchief to his bleeding chin.

"I'll be the judge of that," she told him helping him to his feet. "Go have a seat at the table so I can get you cleaned up," she told him ushering him toward the table.

Slowly Percy made his way to the chair next to me. He held the handkerchief with one hand and was holding the robes up with the other. As he sat down, I could already see a bruise forming both on his chin and the heel of the hand holding the handkerchief.

"Great, everybody is going to think we beat him up tomorrow," Charlie said looking over the top of his book. He had quit laughing but there was a huge grin on his face.

"Wish I didn't have to go."

The words were soft but I just barely caught them. I knew right then wasn't the time to press for an explanation but I wasn't going to just let it go. I knew for sure now that something was bothering my little brother.

"Of course Percy, telling the other kids your older brother's beat you up would be better than telling them you tripped on your robes going up the . . ."

"CHARLIE WEASLEY," Mom yelled, even as I kicked Charlie under the table again to try to get him to shut up.

"Sorry," Charlie muttered and went back to his book.

"Now let's get you cleaned up and finish pinning these robes," Mom said turning her attention to Percy.

Percy's POV:

I was reading when Mom came into the room. In her hands were the robes she had hemmed for me.

"Here you go dear," she said coming into the room. I put my book aside and stood up to take the robes from her. "Are you all packed?"

"I will be as soon as I put these away," I told her taking the robes from her and walking over to my school trunk. I opened it up and put it in with the rest of my school things. Everything was old and looked worn. Even the rat Mom and Dad had bought me looked like he had seen better days. Still, I knew they did the best they could so I didn't complain.

"Are you excited?"

"Yes, I can't wait," I told her trying hard to sound enthusiastic. Truth was I was dreading the next day. I didn't want to go away to Hogwarts. Unfortunately, it was what was expected of me. Since it had opened, almost all the members of my Dad's family had gone to Hogwarts. Even Dad's younger brother, who had graduated a few years ago, had made it through despite my Mom continually telling him that he was going to get expelled. Hogwarts was where my parents had met.

"Your going to learn so much there and have so much fun. My years at Hogwarts were some of the best years of my life," Mom gushed.

I simply nodded. It wasn't as if I hadn't heard all this before. Robes safely packed away, I shut and locked my trunk.

"How's your chin?" Mom asked changing subjects.

"I'm fine Mom," I told her even though she came closer and tilted my head toward the light so she could see for herself. I stuffed my hands in my pockets before she noticed the bruises on them to. She fussed over me enough. I didn't want to give her something else to worry about.

"It doesn't look too bad," She finally said releasing my chin. "Now don't stay up too late," she told me kissing the top of my head.

"I won't," I assured her walking back to my bed. Sitting down I went back to my book as she went to tuck my little brother Ron in. It wasn't long before she was leaving the room, shutting the door behind her.

A few moments later, I could hear her muffled voice coming from the twins' room. From the sound of it, she was yelling at them again. I took some satisfaction in that although I still wanted to get them back.

Not able to concentrate on the book anymore, I closed it and sat it down on the bedside table. I took off my glasses and placed them on top of the book and then reached up and turned off the lamp.

I listened as the rest of my family members got ready for bed. Before long, I heard two sets of feet head back downstairs. My parents. They always stayed up awhile after us kids were in bed. As their footsteps faded away though, the only sound that filled the room was Ron's soft snoring.

I laid awake staring up at the ceiling dreading the next day. I was leaving behind everything I had known and going to a place where a lot was expected of me. Bill and Charlie had done so well at Hogwarts, my parents were always going on about the achievements they had got. I knew my teachers would be comparing me to them. That my parents would be expecting as much if not more out of me as Bill and Charlie had accomplished. But what if I didn't do as well as they did? What if I ended up totally sucking at magic? I mean Charlie had already tried teaching me how to fly on a broomstick and it hadn't gone to well. After his first lesson I had given up. Charlie could already fly when he went to Hogwarts and me - I didn't even want to learn. I just knew that class wasn't going to go well.

I heard my bedroom door creak open. Looking over I saw someone peeking in.

"You still awake Perce?" my brother Bill asked.

I thought about ignoring him. About closing my eyes and pretending I was asleep.

"Yeah, I'm awake," I said instead.

Bill came all the way in, and then closed the door behind him. I turned the lamp back on and sat up on the side of the bed. Bill came and sat down next to me.

"I heard what you said earlier, about wishing you didn't have to go to Hogwarts," Bill told me. I instantly looked down at my hands. I hadn't meant for anyone to hear that. "Want to talk about it."

I shook my head.

"Look, Percy it's okay to be scared. Leaving home for the first time is a big deal."

"Charlie wasn't," I told him. Charlie had been so happy to be leaving for Hogwarts when it was his turn. Excited to see all the things that Bill had told us stories of over the years. Excited to be able to see Quidditch matches in person and even more excited about eventually being able to play the game on a real team.

"Yeah, well Charlie's crazy," Bill said. "He'd jump off a cliff just to be able to say he's done it. I was scared my first year. I wasn't sure what to expect even though Dad and Mom had told me about the school. Was so sure I was going to be the worse at everything but it turned out not to be so bad."

"What if I don't fit in? What if I let Mom and Dad down?"

"Just try your best, and Mom and Dad will be happy. As for fitting in, just be yourself."

"Like that works here," I muttered. Sometimes I wondered if my parents had adopted me. I seemed so different then the rest of my siblings. Ginny was the only one I really spent any time with and I think that was just because I was the only one who didn't tease her.

"You'll do fine, Percy," Bill said putting his arm around my shoulders. "And it's not like you're going alone. Charlie and I will be there with you."

Somehow that wasn't too reassuring, especially not after Charlie's comments earlier. I didn't mention that to Bill though.


	2. Chapter 2

**Charlie's POV:**

Looking out the bedroom window, I could see the first rays of the morning sun creeping into the sky. As quietly as I could, I threw the blankets back and crept out of bed. Trying not to wake Bill up, my older brother would kill me if I did so, I got dressed, grabbed my Quidditch book, and headed downstairs.

I didn't often get up this early myself, but on the rare occasions that I did I enjoyed it. I enjoyed the peace and quiet. With seven kids, the house was seldom quiet and being alone was nearly impossible. Someone was always bothering you about something and with the twins, you always had to be on your guard. You never knew when they were going to pull their next prank and whether or not you were going to be on the receiving end of it or not.

Pulling out one of the chairs from the table, I sat down and opened the book to where I had left off the night before. Being made Quidditch Captain was a big deal and I meant to do a good job of it. In my first year as Captain, the team had gotten another Quidditch Cup for Gryffindor last year. I was hoping to continue that success.

My first obstacle though was getting a good team as many of our players had graduated. The actual training would come after that. Gryffindor was on a winning streak. A winning streak that I knew my house mates were looking for us to continue. It was a lot of pressure and it didn't seem like Bill was going to be much help after our conversation last night.

I got so absorbed in the book that I didn't notice my family start wandering downstairs. In fact, I didn't even realize I wasn't alone anymore until Bill took the book out of my hands.

"Hey! Give that back!" I exclaimed, reaching for the book.

"Breakfast is ready," Bill told me a grin on his face which made me wonder just how many jokes he had already gotten in.

"Fine, but I still want that book," I said grabbing for it again. Bill moved it out of my reach again.

"Boys," came Dad's voice across the room.

Grin fading, Bill handed me back the book. Taking the book from him, I looked around. Breakfast was already on the table and most of my siblings had already filled their plates. Dad was placing Ron's in front of him. I noticed Mom and Ginny were missing though.

"Where's Mom?" I asked sitting the book on the table and helping myself to the bacon, eggs and hash browns that Mom had prepared.

"Upstairs with Ginny. Your sister isn't feeling well this morning, so I'm taking you three boys to the station myself. After you eat, I want you to start getting ready to leave, we don't want to be late."

"Yes, sir," Bill, Percy and I replied.

Breakfast was as noisy as usual even with two less people. Bill and Dad were chatting about Hogwarts, and I chimed in here and there. The twins were teasing either Ron or Percy. I heard something about not tripping over robes at school and knew they must have been given Percy a hard time about last night.

Before long, breakfast was over, and Bill and I were up in our rooms gathering our school stuff.

"Now make sure you don't leave that book," Bill told me grabbing a handle of his trunk, "wouldn't want the team Captain at a loss of what to do at our first practice."

I grabbed my pillow up off my neatly made bed and threw it at him. The pillow hit him on the shoulder. Before he had a chance to retaliate, my father called from downstairs to hurry up.

Leaving the pillow where it was, Bill headed out of our room. Quickly retrieving the pillow, I put it back on the bed, and hurried downstairs myself. As, I came down the steps, Mom was given Percy a hug and then moved on to say good-bye to Bill. I trudged over to join them.

"I will Mom," Bill told her as he hugged her.

"That goes for you too," Mom told me moving from Bill to me. "You look out for your younger brother and behave yourself."

"Yes ma'am," I replied letting my trunk come to a rest on the floor so both of my hands were free.

"Good luck with Quidditch this year. Make sure you write and tell me about every game."

"You know I will Mom," I told her. In fact, after a Quidditch match tended to be the only time I wrote home. I wasn't much of a letter writer, which I knew drove my mother crazy. She loved to hear from us kids when we were away at school. She said the letters were the only way she got to see us grow up. Bill wrote home only slightly more often than I did.

I gave my Mom a hug and then Bill, Percy and I were following Dad out to his bewitched car. Packing the trunks in the trunk of the car, we climbed in and were on our way to the train station to catch the Hogwart's Express.

**Percy's POV:**

Looking out the window of the train, I saw Dad disappear, off to his job at the Ministry of Magic. Turning away from the window, I looked back toward the door of the compartment I was sitting in. Bill and Charlie had disappeared as soon as they had stowed our belongings, leaving me alone in the compartment.

The sound of kids voices drifted in. It sounded if everyone was excited about going to Hogwarts. Everyone that is except for me. Nothing better to do, I opened the school book I had left out. If nothing else, I was determined to do well in school. At least that was something I might actually have a chance at doing well.

"Oh look, he's already studying," I heard a sarcastic voice say. I looked up to see a skinny, mean looking boy standing at the door of the compartment I was sitting in. The fact that he was blocking my only exit was not lost on me. Over his shoulder I could see another, more broad shouldered boy. He looked just as mean as the first one. "Definitely going to be a teacher's pet."

"Well Marcus, with those robes he should be hanging out with the animals," the second boy quipped.

I could feel my face growing warm. I also knew that trying to stand up to them was pointless. Not only were they both bigger than me but there were two of them. My best bet was to keep my mouth shut. I looked back down at the book in front of me.

"What's wrong pipsqueak, cat got you tongue?" Marcus taunted snatching the book out of my hands.

"Hey, give that back," I said standing up. I barely came up to the kid's shoulder.

"Make me," he said menacingly, taking a step toward me. I took a step backwards only to run into the side of the train.

"Why don't you leave him alone?" came another voice from behind the other two kids.

Marcus looked over his shoulder at the other kid, evidently not seeing me as much of a threat.

"You going to make me?"

"Wouldn't be hard, even with your sidekick there," the newcomer said confidently, nodding at Marcus' companion without breaking eye contact with Marcus.

The train whistle sounded, signaling that we were departing the station.

"Maybe some other time. No point in getting kicked out of school before I even get there," Marcus said. "Come on, Darin," he said to his friend starting to walk down the aisle.

My rescuer stepped in front of him, blocking his way.

"Book," he said simply holding out his hand.

The kid named Marcus put my book in his outstretched hand and pushed his way past, his friend Darin right behind him.

"Here you go," the kid said stepping into the compartment and handing me my book.

"Thanks," I said, taking it from him.

"Name's Oliver Wood. You are?"

"Percy Weasley."

"Bill and Charlie's brother?"

I nodded.

"My brother Rob knows them from Quidditch. From what Rob says your brother Charlie is a great Quidditch player."

"Yeah, he's really good," I replied, not at all happy about being known as Bill and Charlie's brother.

"There's room in the compartment I'm in if you want to join us," Oliver said nodding to the compartment across the aisle. I could see two girls and another boy sitting in the compartment looking over at us.

"No thanks," I said quickly looking down at the floor.

"Well if you change your mind the offer's there," Oliver said. "Nice meeting you, Percy," he said and then crossed the aisle to the other compartment.

"What a strange boy," I heard one of the girls whisper.

"Shelly that isn't nice to say. He's probably just shy," the other girl said as Oliver sat down next to her.

I opened my book back up and went back to reading it, blocking out anything else they might have said about me. Things weren't looking that promising. I hadn't even gotten to Hogwarts yet and already I was having problems fitting in.


	3. Chapter 3

**Oliver's POV:**

"Oliver it's your turn," Emily Spinnet said beside me, nudging me with her elbow.

"Oh, sorry," I said, turning my head back to our card game. I took my turn, not that it much mattered as I was losing miserably but then my mind wasn't really on the game. My attention kept drifting over to the compartment across the aisle from us, to where Percy was still sitting alone, head in his school book. I was starting to wonder if he was actually reading it or was just trying to look busy.

I thought about asking him to join us again. He looked so lonely over there. I also felt bad about mentioning his older brothers like I had. I knew how much I hated being referred to as Rob's brother.

Having taken my turn, I glanced back in Percy's direction again. He had been joined by an older student. From the bright red hair, I took it to be one of his brothers. I turned back to the game.

Emily and I had been friends for years, having grown up in the same town. We were both muggle born. My father was a wizard, and had attended Hogwarts himself. After graduation though, he had met and fell in love with my mother, an American girl visiting England with her friends from college. My mother's parents had owned a flower shop and being an only child, expected my mother to take it over. My father loved her so much that he followed her back to her home in Kentucky and eventually married her. They ran that flower shop together now. Rob and I both had my father's magical abilities as did our little brother Luke.

Emily's parents had both grown up in the States, having both moved from London as kids. Neither of them had magical abilities. Emily's magical talents came from her mother's side though, as her mother had two Aunt's who were witches, one of whom worked in the Ministry of Magic. It was that aunt that her parent's had turned to when strange things had started happening around the house. Emily's younger sister Alicia shared her older sister's talents. My Mom had been delivering flowers to a house near the Spinnet's one day and had caught a glimpse of a pail disappearing from the sandbox. Having two magical kids herself, my Mom realized what was going on and had paid a visit to Mrs. Spinnet, the two becoming fast friends. Being the same age and the only two kids with magical abilities in our hometown, it was only natural that Emily and I became friends.

Shelly and Sheldon Murdock, who were twins, we had just met today at the station. They were one of the old wizarding families. Their parents owned a potions shop in Diagon Alley. They claimed to know what every ingredient in the shop was used for. I was waiting until we were in Potions class to see just how true that boast was. That was the only thing I was looking forward to in Potions though. I had heard from my brother just how awful the Potions Master could be, not to mention that if I shared my Dad and brother's talents for potions that was going to be one of my worse classes.

We played our game until my brother showed up in our compartment doorway.

"You kids should get changed into your robes. We're almost there," he told us and then turned and started talking to the student who had joined Percy. When he stood up, I noticed the Head Boy badge pinned to the student's robes. My brother and he disappeared down the aisle together toward the front of the train.

By the time we were pulling into Hogsmeade Station, we had all changed into our robes. As soon as the train came to a stop kids were in the aisles heading for the exit. It had been a long trip and we were all more than ready to get off the train. I felt Emily grab the sleeve of my robe as I step into the aisle of the train, evidently not wanting to be separated from me.

Suppressing the urge to laugh, I started moving with the crowd to the nearest door. In the rush of kids exiting the train, I had loss track of Percy. I only hoped that kid Marcus didn't find him in the crowd either. My gut told me he wasn't done giving Percy a hard time.

With Emily clinging to my robe, I made my way off the train. My brother had already told me, the luggage would be taken care of and that the first years traveled from the station separate from the other kids. It didn't take long to figure out where the first years were suppose to go because as soon as I stepped off the train I heard a voice bellowing, "First years over here, please!"

The voice belonged to a huge man with a shaggy beard and equally shaggy hair. With the fur coat he was wearing, it wouldn't take much to mistake him for a bear or something.

"He's huge," I heard Shelly say. I looked to my left to find her and Sheldon standing beside me.

"You would think they would send someone a little less intimidating to get the first years," Sheldon commented.

"I'm sure the school wouldn't send anyone dangerous," Emily said not sounding at all confident. Not to mention she was still clinging to my robe.

"Well I don't know about you three but I don't want to be left here," I said starting to walk in the direction of the big guy. Emily followed, not that she had much choice unless she let go of my robe.

There were boats waiting for us. The big guy, who introduced himself as Hagrid, told us to board them, four of us to one boat. Looking at them, I wondered how they were going to go anywhere. They looked like rowboats but there were no oars to be seen.

Around us, the other first years started climbing aboard boats - some more eagerly than others. Some were acting like this was a neat adventure while others looked scared to death. I was definitely with the former.

Emily in tow, I headed closer to the docks. I was about to step onto an empty boat when a voice caught my attention.

"So do weasels swim."

I looked in the direction of the voice, to see Marcus and his pal standing on the dock in front of a boat, looking down with a leering look. The boat had two occupants. One was Percy. The other was another boy that I had yet to see today. Both of them looked a little scared.

Pulling my robe out of Emily's grasp, I heading in that direction. I hated bullies and there was no way I was going to let this kid Marcus intimidate me or anyone else

"What do you say Darin, should we find out? Conduct a little experiment?"

"Sounds like fun."

I quickened my pace, but before I could reach them, Marcus and Darin had already upset the little boat. The boat tipped to one side, dumping its two occupants into the cold waters of the lake. Not breaking my stride, I continued toward Marcus. Reaching him, I gave him a shove that sent him into the lake. His buddy Darin backed away from me as I turned toward him.

"I'll get you back for that," Marcus said as his head broke the surface.

"Go ahead and try," I called back to him.

"What's going on over here?" a big booming voice said. I turned to see Hagrid striding toward us.

"Nothing," Percy said getting to his feet, having pulled himself back up onto the dock. Emily was helping the other boy out of the water. "The dock was just more slippery than we thought," he said in a way of an explanation.

"Is everyone okay?"

"Yeah," Percy and the other boy answered.

"Fine," Marcus muttered. Darin had helped pulled him back onto the dock. I could tell he wanted to tell Hagrid that I had pushed him in but if he did that, then how Percy and the other kid actually ended up in the water would come out, and he didn't want to get in trouble himself.

"Well, then let's get into the boats so we're not late. And try to be more careful."

"Yes sir," we all said in unison.

As Hagrid walked away to check on the other first years, I grabbed Percy's arm and led him to a still empty boat. Emily followed us. I'm not sure where the other kid got to. He probably figured being around Percy wasn't safe anymore.

With a last glare at us, Marcus and Darin headed down the dock in search of another empty boat. I couldn't help but hope that the boat he picked would spring a leak on the way across the lake and he never reached the school. Mom would scold me for a thought like that, but I didn't care.

"Thanks for your help again," Percy said to me as we got settled into the boat.

"Not a problem," I told him. "Why don't you stick with me and Emily when we get to the other side? I might not be the best company but anything has got to beat hanging out alone."

Percy nodded. I was about to say something else to him when a girl approached our boat.

"Can I join you?" she asked looking at me. She had a goofy smile on her face that I couldn't quite figure out. "Most of the other boats are full."

"Go ahead," I told her indicating the empty seat next to Percy.

"Thanks," she said, climbing carefully into the boat. Still the boat rocked a little and I saw Percy clutch the side of the boat. I had a feeling he wouldn't voluntarily be going on any more boat trips for quite awhile. "I'm Penelope Clearwater," she said still only looking at me.

"Oliver Wood. This is my friend Emily Spinnet and that's Percy Weasley."

"Weasley," Penelope said thoughtfully. "Your brother Charlie Weasley the Gryffindor seeker isn't he. Everyone talks about how he's the best seeker at the school since James Potter. You any good at Quidditch?"

"Never really took to the game," Percy said quietly looking out across the lake as the boats started moving away from the dock on their own. Percy grabbed the side of the boat again. I bit my lip to keep from laughing.

"What about you?" Penelope asked looking back at me.

"Haven't had many opportunities to play, but I know the basics," I told her. I actually planned on trying out for the team even though first years hardly ever made the house teams. That of course was assuming I got into a house that allowed first years to try out. My brother said Ravenclaw and Slytherin didn't even allow first years to try out. I was hoping to be in Gryffindor myself. Both my Dad and brother had been Gryffindors and I was hoping to carry on that tradition.

Penelope started chatting about other things, asking questions here and there. If nothing else, the girl sure was friendly.

**Bill's POV:**

I was the last of the returning students to take a seat at my house table in the great hall. I had been busy, making sure that luggage and students all got from Hogsmeade Station to the castle without anyone or anything getting loss. Thankfully, everything had gone smoothly.

I took a seat next to Charlie at the end of the table near the teacher's platform. The empty seats to my other side would be for the first years that got placed in Gryffindor this year. I was scanning the teacher's table seeing if we had any new professors this year when the doors to the Great Hall opened. Charlie was immediately elbowing me in the ribs.

"What?" I hissed.

"Look," Charlie said nodding toward the first years who were walking into the Hall behind Professor McGonagall. "Wonder what happened."

I noticed what had drawn his attention. Three of the first years were soaked and Percy was one of them. The wet robes, only made my brother look smaller. The look on his face clearly said he wanted to be anywhere other than here.

The first years gathered in front of the teacher's platform, as McGonagall walked up the steps and taking a stool with a ratty old hat on top of it, proceeded to the middle of the stage. Within moments the sorting ceremony had started. Cheers erupted from the appropriate tables as the first years were placed in their appropriate houses.

"Percy Weasley," McGonagall finally called.

I watched as my brother made his way toward the steps, one of the last first year's to be called. When he tripped going up the stairs, I cringed. He had already been receiving stares because he was soaking wet. As he took a seat on the stool, I could see that his face was bright red. I could only hope he was placed in Gryffindor. If he ended up in another house, I had a feeling my brother would be begging to be sent home. So far, his school experience didn't look to be going positively.

"Gryffindor!" the Sorting Hat called out.

My classmates and I started clapping and cheering as Percy made his way off the stage, much more quickly than he had gone up there. As he made his way to an empty seat at the Gryffindor table, one of the first year Slytherins, who was just as wet as Percy, stuck a foot out and tripped him. The cheering stopped and was soon replaced by laughter. My heart went out to my little brother. He never had liked to be the center of attention.

Percy got to his feet and broke into a run, making his way down the aisle between the Gryffindor and Slytherin tables. As he ran past me, I could see tears glistening in his eyes. I quickly got to my feet, and followed him. As I went through the door to the Great Hall, I could hear McGonagall calling the next name, continuing with the sorting ceremony and trying to get the students minds off of what had just happened.

I spotted Percy sitting on the main stairs of the castle. He was bent over. His arms resting on his knees and head down. I went over to him and pulled him into a hug. His still wet robes got mine damp.

I was about to ask if he was okay but stopped. He clearly wasn't okay. He had somehow gotten wet, tripped up the steps in front of the whole school and then had been tripped once again in front of the whole school. His hands were still bruised from the night before and more than likely hurt from the fall he had just taken.

"It'll be okay. What just happened will be forgotten by tomorrow," I told him trying to console him.

"Yeah, when they get something else to laugh at me about," Percy muttered.

"Percy, how did you get wet?"

"Someone upset the boat that I was in."

"On purpose?"

My brother nodded.

"Was it the same kid who tripped you?"

Another nod.

I was angry. I knew my brother. There was no way he would have done anything to deserve that kind of retaliation from anyone, especially not in the little time he had been here. For some reason, that kid had picked my brother as a target. I wasn't sure what to do about it right then though. Yes, the latest incident had happened right in front of the teachers so I was pretty sure it wouldn't go unpunished but I didn't know what happened during the prior incident. Had Hagrid seen it? Did he even know about it?

"I don't want to stay. I want to go home," Percy said still not looking up.

Before I could reply, I heard the door to the Great Hall open. Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape strode out of the Hall. I could hear Dumbledore's booming voice doing school announcements. The Slytherin who had tripped my brother was walking directly in front of Snape as they headed down to the dungeon area of the Castle. McGonagall headed in our direction. The door to the Great Hall closed again, and Percy's sobs and McGonagall's footsteps were the only sounds in the corridor.

"Percy, are you okay?" Professor McGonagall asked as she came to a stop in front of us.

"He's just embarrassed and upset," I answered for him, knowing my brother wasn't going to answer.

"Hagrid said some students slipped on the dock and ended up in the water. Is that what really happened?" she asked. Evidently this last incident had her thinking along the same lines as myself.

Percy didn't answer. Didn't make a move.

"If Marcus Flint did something on the docks I want to know," McGonagall said not giving up. "I can talk to Shane Reed would I get another answer?"

I remembered Shane was the other first year who had been wet. He had ended up in Hufflepuff.

Percy remained silent.

"Percy, we need to know the truth," I prodded softly. "What happened on the docks?"

"I ca-ca-can't say."

"Are you protecting someone?" McGonagall asked.

"He's protecting me," someone spoke up. I looked up to see that Rob's younger brother, Oliver, had joined us. " I saw Flint upset the boat Percy and the other kid had gotten into, sending both of them into the lake. I pushed Flint into the lake. That's why Percy said they had slipped. He didn't want me to get in trouble for pushing Flint."

"Did you do anything to provoke Flint?" McGonagall asked looking from Oliver to my brother, who had finally looked up at the sound of Oliver's voice.

Percy shook his head no.

"Flint started giving him a hard time on the train for no reason at all," Oliver supplied.

"I don't know what to do with you two," Professor McGonagall said looking from Percy to Oliver. "You never should have pushed anyone into the lake no matter what they had done. You should have informed Hagrid what had happened and let him deal with it."

"Yes ma'am," Oliver replied.

"And you never should have lied about what happened in the first place," McGonagall said turning back to my brother. "However, you both were looking out for each other. I'm willing to overlook these transgressions this time, but I expect better behavior from both of you in the future. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes ma'am," Oliver and Percy both replied.

"Oliver, go back and rejoin the feast. Bill, why don't you take your brother up to Gryffindor Tower. He's had a long day. I'll make sure some food gets sent up there for you."

"Yes Professor," I said, relieved. I knew the last thing Percy would want to do was go back into the Great Hall.

McGonagall turned and disappeared back into the Hall herself, leaving just Percy and myself. Percy wiped more tears away.

"Come on, lets get you upstairs and out of these wet robes," I told my brother standing up. I helped him to his feet and started leading him toward Gryffindor Tower. Halfway there, Percy spoke up.

"Are you mad at me?"

"Mad?" I asked surprised by the question. Why on earth would I be mad at him? Other than telling a white lie to protect someone who had helped him out, my brother had done nothing wrong. I would've done that myself. "No, I'm not mad at you Percy," I told him putting my arm around his shoulders. "You haven't done anything for me to be mad at you for."

"I still want to go home."

"You've had a bad day. Things will get better," I reassured him knowing Mom would never consent to him coming home without an explanation and she wouldn't like the explanation she got. Besides I was sure my brother would like it here once he got use to it.

Beside me Percy muttered something too low for me to make out. I didn't ask him to repeat it as I was sure he hadn't meant for me to hear him. It had sounded like, 'easy for you to say', but I wasn't sure.

We reached Gryffindor Tower and I gave The Fat Lady the new password. The wall swung open and I led Percy into the Gryffindor Common Room. As McGonagall had promised there was food laid out on one of the tables for us.

After showing Percy to the first year boy's dormitory, I came back to the Common room while he changed. He rejoined me a few minutes later in dry robes. I tried to make conversation as Percy and I ate but I wasn't very successful. Percy would answer my questions with as short of answers as he could manage and then fall silent again. I also noticed that he didn't eat much, and spent more time pushing the food around his plate.

I knew he was upset, and didn't comment on his apparent lack of appetite. I knew I was going to have to keep a close eye on him for the next day or so though.

By the time the others started showing up, Percy had already retreated back to his dormitory.


	4. Chapter 4

**Charlie's POV:**

I was awake bright and early the next day. My fellow sixth year Gryffindor's were still snoring around me, as the sun just started peeking through the tower window. Like the morning before, I quietly got dressed, grabbed the books I needed for my morning classes and some extra parchment and slipped downstairs.

The common room was empty, as I expected, and I walked over to a table near the window and laid out a piece of parchment. I took my quill and ink bottle out of my bag and placed the ink bottle next to the piece of parchment. Dipping the quill into the ink, I started my announcement bulletin. I wanted to hold try outs as quickly as possible. The sooner I had my team, the sooner we could start practicing.

I had already managed to talk to McGonagall the night before to set up a meeting with her. As head of the Gryffindor House, I had to go through her to set up tryout times and practices as it was her responsibility to see that extracurricular activities did not interfere with our studies. After that I had to catch up with Madame Hooch, who was responsible for the Quidditch Pitch schedule. I already had a lot of things to do and I hadn't even had my first class yet.

By the time my fellow Gryffindors started to find their way into the common room I had finished. Putting the lid on my ink bottle, I looked down at my work, looking for mistakes. I wanted to make sure it was right.

_The Gryffindor Quidditch Team is Looking for New Players_

_Two Chasers and a Beater needed_

_All Gryffindors welcomed to try out_

_Tryouts to be held:_

I'd have to add the rest of the information later as the tryout time and date wasn't set yet. Personally, I was hoping I didn't have too many first years at try outs. McGonagall insisted that everybody be given a chance though it had been years since a first year had made the team. She insisted it was only fair and that you never knew when you'd find a first year that had real talent or when we might need to replace someone on the team due to injury. Rob Wood had only been a reservist last year but had ended up playing the last two matches. I had cornered him on the train yesterday to see if he was interested on being on the team this year. He jumped at the chance. That gave me one less position to fill.

"And Captain Quidditch is already at it," Derek Finnigan said. I looked to my left to find him hovering over my shoulder. Derek was in Bill's class and had given me a hard time ever since I made Quidditch Captain last year. I think he wanted the position and was upset that he hadn't gotten it. Still, when it came down to it, he listened to me so I just put up with the teasing. What else was I going to do? Not to mention, the guy could probably bench press me this year and I wasn't exactly small for my age.

"The earlier the start we get, the more prepared we'll be," I told him, taking the piece of parchment and rolling it up.

"Face it kid. It's a rebuilding year for us. We'll be lucky to win a match."

"Do I need to add Keeper to my list of players needed?" I asked him, standing as straight as I could. I still came short of Derek's shoulder.

"You couldn't find one as good as me and you know it," he told me. He turned and headed out of the room with his girlfriend though obviously not wanting to really see if I would go through with the threat or not.

I was thankful for that, because I wasn't sure myself I'd have the guts to go through with it. Yeah, I might be Captain but I had to admit Derek scared me. I knew if I kicked him off of the team then I would have to be looking over my shoulder at all times.

"Hey Jen, I got to run," I called to my fellow sixth year Prefect. " Cover for me will ya," I told her. We were supposed to make sure the first years found their way back to the Great Hall this morning.

"You're a Prefect too you know," she replied, clearly not at all happy with me. I kept walking toward the door. Jennifer Chadwick's bark was worst than her bite. She'd complain about it but I also knew I didn't have to worry about her turning me into McGonagall for neglecting my duties.

"Yeah, but that title comes second to the title of Quidditch Captain," I heard Bill call out as I headed out the door. "Don't worry Jen, I'll give you a hand," he told her.

Good ole Bill. Always willing to help someone out. Although, I had a distinct feeling that I'd probably be getting a lecture from him later.

The sounds of the Gryffindor Common Room faded behind me as the door closed behind me. I had something to do right now and I wasn't going to let Jennifer's complaining or a looming lecture from my older brother stop me.

McGongall was waiting for me in her office when I showed up even though technically, I was ten minutes early. McGonagall took a serious interest in the Quidditch team. All of the heads of houses did. I knew she would be just as anxious as me to put together this year's team although she would never show it on the outside.

The office door was opened so I knocked on the door jam. Professor McGonagall looked up.

"Charlie, come in," she said, as she glanced over at the door. I walked in, and stood in front of her desk. "So, you've already been thinking about a practice schedule for this year. I'd like to hear it," she told me, looking at me critically. McGongall's stern features tended to instill fear into the first years but by this time I had grown use to her.

"Well, I was thinking I could hold trouts on Friday and then start practice on Monday afternoon after dinner. I was thinking practicing on Mondays and Wednesdays should be enough to get us ready for the season. Once the season starts, I can decide if we need more practices than that."

McGonagall nodded, a thoughtful look on her face.

"Is that your flyer?" she asked nodded toward the parchment in my hand.

"Yes," I replied, as she held her hand out. I placed it in her hand_,_ feeling nervous. For some reason, when it came to the team, I was always on edge. Always wanting everything to be perfect so I wouldn't let anyone down, especially Professor McGonagall.

She unrolled the parchment and looked it over. I watched her face for any clue of what she was thinking but as usual it was impassive. "I'm assuming Bill and Derek are still in their position but whose your chaser?" she asked, having taking notice of the positions I had listed.

"Rob Wood. He filled in last year and did a good job. Figured it was only fair to move him up from the reservist list."

McGonagall nodded and then handed the parchment back to me. "Very well. I will talk to Madam Hooch about getting the Quidditch Pitch at your requested times. I should have an answer for you by lunch time."

"Yes, Professor," I said trying not to sound to disappointed. I wasn't sure how I was going to get through my morning classes. I was anxious to get started as I knew we had a lot of work ahead of us.

Bidding Professor McGonagall good-bye, I headed to the great hall. Most of the other students had already gathered for breakfast. Finding an empty seat by my friend Rodney Parkinson, I sat down.

"Where were you off to so early?" Rodney asked me.

"Had to meet with McGonagall about Quidditch tryouts and practice times."

"Not missing a beat this year are you," he said with a shake of his head. "You know if you would put half the enthusiasm into your schoolwork as you do that game, your classes would be much easier."

"But then you wouldn't have the pleasure of helping me rush through assignments and cram for tests," I told him with a grin.

"And I sure would miss that," he said sarcastically.

"Schedules arrive yet?" I asked, curious as to what class I would have first.

"No, but I sure hope Potions isn't first because I don't feel like dealing with Snape first thing in the morning."

"Yeah, well that was one class I didn't mind failing on my O.W.L.s last year," I told him.

**Percy's POV:**

I was more than grateful to get out of the Great Hall after breakfast. I had felt Bill's eyes on me the entire time, watching me like a hawk. Evidently he was taking looking out for me serious, even more so after last night. At least he couldn't follow me to all my classes.

Not sure at all of what direction to head into for my first class, Transfiguration, I searched out some fellow Gryffindors and simply followed them. I breathed a sigh of relief as Marcus and his fellow Slytherins headed outside. At least I wouldn't have to watch out for him for a while.

Following the Gryffindors into a class room, I found an empty seat in the back. After what had happened last night, the last thing I wanted to do was to sit somewhere that would give people an easy opportunity to stare at me. Not to mention, Professor McGonagall was standing at the front of the room, not looking all that friendly.

Already it seemed as though people had started to make friends as my classmates made their way into the room in pairs or small groups. As I expected, it hadn't taken me long to become the odd man out. I saw a few people glance my way quickly. They were probably talking about what had happened during the sorting ceremony the night before. Trying to ignore the looks, I glanced down at the book in front of me.

"Its kind of hard to read a book if you don't open it," I heard a voice say from beside me. I looked up to see Oliver standing there with a grin on his face.

"Wasn't really reading it," I said looking back down at the desk.

"Obviously," he said as he pulled out the chair next to me and sat down. "Transfiguration should be fun. Since Rob turned seventeen and could do magic at home, he's driven my Mom crazy with changing plates and stuff into mice just to scare her."

I smiled. I imagined what my Mom would do if Bill had done that to her. Though we weren't exactly near anybody, I imagined that our neighbors would have heard her yelling at him. She didn't exactly react well to our regular household rodents and had warned me that if Scabbers ever got loose in the house that he was fair game. Mom didn't like rodents at all.

"You missed the tour of the school last night," Oliver said. "If you want I could show you around some during our lunch break. We can grab something to eat quick first."

I shrugged.

"I'll take that as a yes," Oliver said beside me. He didn't get a chance to say anything else though as McGonagall cleared her throat and began talking.

After showing us a quick example of Transfiguration by changing her desk into a pig and back again, she started lecturing to us about the basics of transfiguration. I started scribbling down notes, my class mates doing the same around me. Her voice and the sound of quills on parchment were the only sounds in the classroom.

"Although I don't expect much success today, I am going to give you all an opportunity to try a little transfiguration yourself these last fifteen minutes of class," Professor McGonagall finally told us. She held up a matchstick. "This will be your subject. Your goal, is to change this matchstick into a needle," she said as she dropped the matchstick she was holding into a box of others. She handed the box to Emily in the front row. "Now I want each of you to take a matchstick. Once everybody has one I will demonstrate how to go about changing it."

After showing us how to do it, she told us all to attempt it. Soon twelve voices could be heard saying the incantation. It wasn't as simple as she made it looked. As she predicted, none of us were being very successful. On my tenth try though, I thought I noticed the match stick had a silver color to it briefly but maybe it was only my imagination.

Determined to do something right finally, I kept trying. Two tries later, the matchstick turned silver and stayed that way.

"Very good, Mr. Weasley," McGonagall said. I looked up see her standing over Oliver and myself. "You almost have it. Try it again," she instructed changing my matchstick back.

Nervous about her watching I stumbled over the words the next time. McGonagall just stood there silently, evidently waiting for me to try again. Taking a deep breath, I said the incantation again. To my surprise, the matchstick turned silver, and then took on the pointed, shiny shape of a metal needle. I had done it!

"Very impressive, Mr. Weasley," McGonagall said. I looked up to see her smiling as the bell rang. "We will continue this lesson tomorrow," McGonagall announced as we all began to gather our books, parchments and quills together.

For the first time since I left home, I started to think that this might not be so bad after all.


	5. Chapter 5

**Oliver's POV:**

"I'm going to be getting loss every time I turn around," Percy commented from beside me as I led him out into the courtyard. We still had fifteen minutes until our next class, and I figured some fresh air would be nice, especially seeing as our next class was Potions, which would take us down to the dungeon area of the castle. The words surprised me as they were the first words that Percy had actually said to me since the beginning of our transfiguration class. All I had gotten after that had been nods and shrugs.

He hadn't been exactly making being his friend easy but I wasn't about to admit defeat. I could tell he needed a friend and as no one else was exactly attempting it, figured he was going to be stuck with me whether he liked it or not.

I wasn't sure why I was so intent on being there for Percy. Yeah I didn't like that Marcus Flint had just seemed to randomly pick him as a target to bully but it wasn't just that. Maybe it was that in some ways, Percy reminded me of my little brother. Luke was quiet. Didn't like crowds and had a hard time making friends. Luke had however finally made a really good friend last year, Bobby Brown. The two were inseparable now and I had seen the difference that friendship had made in my little brother. Luke smiled more now. Enjoyed going to school more. Maybe I saw a chance to return that favor. Do for someone else what Bobby had done for my brother.

"It shouldn't be too bad," I said with a shrug. "Well, except for the moving staircases." I sat down on one of the steps. "Rob says it starts getting cold here fairly soon. Cold and rainy," I commented as Percy sat down beside me.

"Hard to imagine that kind of weather on a great day like this," Percy said.

"Yeah. Rob said the two Quidditch matches he played in last year had horrible weather. One was in rain and one was in snow. I know you said you never took to the game but does that mean playing or do you have no interest in it at all?"

"I enjoy watching it."

"My Dad taught both me and Rob. I know the basics though I've never really had a chance to play in a real game. I plan on trying out. Probably won't make it," I said with a shrug, "But at least it will give me an idea of where I'm at and what I need to work on."

"Hey Oliver," I heard a familiar voice say. I looked up to see Penelope hurrying in my direction. Shelly and Sheldon were following behind her, Sheldon with a stormy look on his face.

"Hi, Penelope," I replied.

"This place is great isn't it. I absolutely loved Herbology but that Professor Snape gives me the creeps."

"Not to mention she wouldn't know sugar from cinnamon," Sheldon commented softly. Shelly elbowed him in the ribs for the comment but Penelope either didn't hear him or was more than happy to pretend she hadn't.

"Have you had Potions yet?"

"No," I commented. "It's actually our next class," I told her. "What's the stormy look for Sheldon?" I asked looking past Penelope and back to the twins.

"He's upset because he's in Ravenclaw and can't try out for the Quidditch team," Shelly answered for her brother.

"Who'd want to play that game anyway? It's dangerous and there isn't much point in it. Getting that ball through the hoops can't be all that hard."

"I'm trying out for Gryffinddor," I commented.

"Oh," Penelope said turning slightly pink. Before anything else could be said though the warning bell rang indicating that we should start heading toward our next classes and she headed toward the castle.

"What class are you heading off too?" I asked Sheldon as I stood up. Sheldon, Shelly, Percy and I headed toward the castle.

"History of Magic."

"Nap time," Percy said beside me. I chuckled. At least I hadn't been the only one who had found Binns boring.

"It can't be that bad," Shelly said.

"Wait and see," I told her. "Sorry about your luck with Quidditch, Sheldon. There is always next year."

"I haven't given up on this year yet," he told me. "I've got an idea on how I might be able to get on the team. I'll tell you about it later," he told me as we reached the steps leading down into the dungeon area of the castle.

"Okay," I told him as Percy and I headed down the steps and Shelly and Sheldon continued on to Professor Binns' classroom.

Halfway down the steps I heard an unwelcome voice behind us. "Hey look, it's the weasel and his body guard," Marcus leered as he walked past Percy.

Dari Reed was right behind him. As he passed by though, Darin grabbed Percy's bag off his shoulder and proceeded to dump everything onto the steps. Percy's books, quill, wand and potion ingredients scattered. "Oh, so sorry," Darin said dropping the bag. "I'm just so clumsy."

Laughter trailing behind them, the two Slytherins continued down the steps. Other students were going by us now too, trying to avoid the spilt articles but not stopping to help.

Percy snatched his bag up off the ground and started picking things up. Kneeling down I started to help him.

"What happened?" Emily asked coming down the steps. She bent down to pick up some pouches of ingredients for Potions.

"Darin," Percy replied.

"Well, we need to hurry or we're going to be late," Emily said as she dropped the pouches in Percy's bag and went down a few steps to get some more.

"You two go ahead. There's no need for all of us to get in trouble," Percy said.

"Percy . . ."

"I'm serious, Oliver. Go," Percy told me, taking the book of his I was holding out of my hand.

I nodded and then headed down the steps. Emily falling in step beside me. The two of us hurried down the corridor and just slipped into the classroom as the bell ran. As Snape glared at us from the front of the room, we slipped into two empty seats in the front of the room.

Snape took role call, muttering something about 'another one' when he got to Percy's name. He didn't look at all happy when I told him Percy would be along shortly and he didn't give me a chance to explain anything. I heard Marcus and Darin snicker on the other side of the room.

"We'll start without our wayward student," Snape said coldly as he snapped the roll call book shut. It echoed through the room. " You are here to study the subtle science and exact art of potion-making. There will be no foolish wand waving in this class but I can teach you bottle fame, brew glory or even put a stopper in death. Potion-making is a very powerful form of magic and few of you will show any real adept for it."

"Due to the recent showing of low marks students have been showing the last few years, Professor Dumbledore has asked me to revise my method of teaching. As such, you will pair . . ."

Snape trailed off as the door to the classroom opened. Like everyone else I turned to see Percy walking slowly into the classroom. With all eyes on him, his face matched the color of his hair.

"Ah, Mr. Weasley, you've finally decided to grace us with your prescience," Snape said cooly. "Looks like you follow your brother Charlie in your ability to be on time. He always felt Quidditch more important than my class. I hope you don't share that view."

"N-n-no Professor," Percy said softly.

"As I was saying, you'll be working in pairs this year. Looks like your partner will be Mr. Wood," Snape told him glancing at the only empty seat next to me. "Let's hope you take after your brother Bill more than Charlie when it comes to potion-making or we might be in trouble. Mr. Wood's family has yet to show any knack for the practice," he said sneering at me.

Rob was right. This guy was a creep.

Percy said nothing as he slid into the seat beside me. Snape walked over and put his hands on the table. Leaning down he addressed Percy, "You will report to my office for detention at six o'clock this evening. Make sure you are on time," he said softly.

"Yes, Professor," Percy said so low that even I could barely hear him.

"Good notes will be essential to passing this class," Snape announced standing up and addressing the entire class. None of us wasted any time with getting out parchment and quills as Snape started going over some basic ingredients used in even the simplest potions. Soon the scratching sound of quills on parchment filled the room.

"And that brings us to monkshod and wolfsbane. Mr. Weasley, perhaps you could tell us the difference between these two herbs." It wasn't the first time he had asked a question of one of us and so far no one had been able to answer correctly, though the question he had asked Marcus I could have answered.

"There is no difference, Professor," Percy replied beside me. "Monkshod and wolfsbane are the same plant. The plant is also known as aconite."

"That is correct," Professor Snape replied looking slightly surprised.

"Teacher's pet," Jason Goyle whispered behind us.

"Five points for Gryffindor," Snape said, still not sounding completely happy about it. "Now for your first potion to make, turn to page ten of your book. There you will find the directions for a potion to cure boils. I'm not holding my breath that any of you will be successful," he said as he sat down at his desk.

We all started getting out our things to get started. "Nice job," I whispered to Percy as we started finding the ingredients needed for the potion.

"Happened to be something I read on the train," Percy whispered back.

It wasn't long before I found out that I shared my father's talent for potion-making - in other words, none whatsoever. If it weren't for Percy watching what I was doing and pointing out steps I was trying to skip, the potion would have been a mess. Possibly something like the boiling over purple goo that Marcus and Darin were dealing with across the room. I heard two shrieks from a couple of Gryffindor girls but didn't dare to look behind me to see what was going on.

As the end of the class neared, Snape started walking around looking at what we had created. He started over with the Slytherins. Other than the mess that Darin and Marcus had concocted I didn't hear many comments from him as he made his way to the back of the classroom. That changed as he got to the Gryffindor's side. He seemed to be picking on every little thing. I heard points coming off of Gryffindor left and right.

Finally he reached our row. He paused in front of Ellen and Emily's cauldron.

"Very good," he told them. "Five points for Gryffindor," he said moving over to stand in front of Percy and me. The five points hardly made up for those he had been deducting on his way up through the classroom.

I held my breath. Had we done it right?

Snape stared down at our cauldron silently. It was like he was searching for something wrong. "A little on the weak side," he finally said "but not bad for a first attempt. Perhaps there is hope for the two of you in this class," he told us as the bell rang signaling the end of the class.

As Professor Snape announced our homework, I let out the breath I had been holding. Around me my classmates started to quickly clean things up. If they shared my feelings, they were anxious to get out of the classroom and away from Snape.

**Bill's POV:**

After getting a jump on our classmates on the library books we needed for a school project during the first part of dinner, Rob, Angelica and myself finally headed for the Great Hall. As I headed into the Great Hall, I was only half listening to Rob and Angelica's discussion about the first day of classes. My mind really hadn't been on my own classes today. I couldn't help but wonder how Percy had made out. Had things gotten better? Had that Marcus kid continued to give him a hard time.

I had seen Percy during lunch, and once again had noticed he was moving things around on the plate more than eating. I hadn't said anything though. The last thing I wanted to do was start being a mother hen and embarrass him in front of everyone. Especially when he had been sitting with Oliver and some other classmates. Oliver had been trying to hold a conversation with Percy, but from the looks of things it had been a one-sided conversation. Oliver and Percy had left the hall with quite a bit of time left to the lunch break and I hadn't seen either of them since.

I scanned the Gryffindor table. Charlie was sitting with Rodney and a couple of other classmates. I had been up to the common room after lunch and saw that he had found the time to post the tryout date and time. With my added responsibilities as Head Boy, I had considered not playing Quidditch this year, however Charlie was counting on me. I figured I'd find time to fit it into my schedule. At least he hadn't scheduled anything for this weekend.

Looking a little further toward the teacher's platform, I found most of the first years sitting together. Oliver was sitting next to one of the girls I had seen him with on the train. Thinking back to the sorting ceremony of the night before I tried to think of her name but it wouldn't come to me. I had been hoping Percy would be sitting with him but I didn't see my brother there. Scanning the rest of the table, I realized Percy wasn't there at all.

Rob and Angelica sat down in empty seats at the end of the table nearest the door. "I'll join you in a second," I told them, as I continued walking down the table. I stopped behind Charlie and leaned down. "Have you seen Percy?"

Charlie glanced at me quickly and then glanced down to where the first years sat. "He was sitting down there with Rob's brother," Charlie said. "I'm not sure when he left. He probably just headed up to the Common Room but if you're so concerned about it, ask Oliver where he got to."

"I will," I told him. I dropped my voice a little. "Don't forget Mom told us to look out for him and he isn't exactly having the best experience here so far so how about showing a bit more concern yourself. Also, if I catch you shirking Prefect duties again, I will turn you into Professor McGonagall myself."

"It was just . . ."

"I don't care what it was. Like it or not Charlie, you're a role model not only for your classmates but the younger students as well. Start setting a decent example for them," I told him as I stood up and continued down the table. I heard Charlie mutter something under his breath but didn't concern myself with it.

The first years got quiet as I approached. Some suddenly got really interested in their food while others just looked at me.

"Hi, Bill," Oliver said to me, the only first year at the table seemingly not intimidated by me.

"Hi, Oliver. Do you know where Percy got to?"

"Did you check the lake? He may have decided to take another swim," A third-year Ravenclaw said from the table behind me. I heard those around him laughing. The laughter died out as I threw a look over my shoulder in their direction.

"He had a detention with Snape this evening," Oliver said.

How could he have managed to get a detention already, I wondered? Percy wasn't exactly one to cause trouble.

"What happened?"

"Darin Jacobs knocked Percy's bag out of his hand on the way to Potions. Percy was late because he was picking everything up."

"And late is late in Snape's eyes. He doesn't care why you're late," I said. Evidently, Percy's first full day was continuing to be a trail. "Thanks, Oliver," I told him and then headed back toward where my friends were sitting.

I had planned on sending Mom an owl tonight to let her know we had all gotten here safely. I was starting to wonder what I was going to write though. Did I tell her Percy was struggling to fit in here or not? He had already told me he wanted to go home last night. If I told her things were fine and then things kept getting worse then she would be angry at me for not telling her the truth from the beginning. The other question was, would Percy write to her? Would he ask to come home? If she got contradicting letters, she would really be worried.

I sighed as I sat down in the empty seat next to Rob. Both he and Angelica looked at me.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm just trying to decide what to tell Mom when I write her. Snape's already given Percy a detention on top of what happened to him yesterday. I don't want to write something that's going to send her running here and I don't want to lie to her either. Sometimes I hate being the eldest."

"I know that feeling," Rob said. "I'm just lucky Oliver seems to be doing well here so far."


	6. Chapter 6

**Charlie's POV:**

As I walked the corridors on patrol duty, my mind was concentrating more on Quidditch. I was trying to figure out how to conduct try outs. Did I want to try out the beaters or the chasers first? Did I want to do something with them as a group that would weed out the hopefuls that really had no right even being at tryouts? I kind of wanted to get the first years cut as soon as possible so they didn't waste too much of my time.

Not to mention, I was already not on the greatest term with the team I did have. Derek didn't like me. I had a feeling he might be jumping on any little mistake I made this year. I wasn't too popular with Bill right now either. I had gotten another lecture from Bill this evening when he found me in the Common room ten minutes after I was supposed to be out on patrol duty. I had been working on homework and hadn't realized it had been that late but Bill had gotten on me about being responsible again.

Of course his lecture had made me another ten minutes late for patrol duty. All the while he had been talking he had been casting glances at the door, evidently looking for Percy who had yet to come back from his detention with Snape. I glanced at my watch. It was eight forty. Curfew was at eight thirty which meant Percy should be back in the common room by now. Hopefully, that would put Bill in a better mood.

"Hurry up before we get caught," I heard a whispered voice say which drew my attention away from my thoughts. Whoever it was, was clearly up to something not to mention they were breaking curfew.

I walked a little faster in the direction of the voice. Rounding a corner I saw two fourth year Hufflepuffs kneeling next to a statue outside of Flitwick's classroom.

"What are you two up to?" I asked coming up behind them. The two Hufflepuffs jumped and one of them dropped what was in his hand. Two stink bombs rolled harmlessly across the corridor.

I bent down and picked them up. "Not only are these banned items," I said looking back at the two Hufflepuffs, "But you're also out past curfew. Ten points each from Hufflepuff and I will be informing Madame Sprout," I told them. They looked at each other and then the floor. "Now off to your common room, now," I told them.

I watched the two Hufflepuffs scurry down the corridor. I put the stink bombs in my pocket and continued walking down the corridor.

Approaching the next intersection, I saw two first year Ravenclaws coming from one of the side corridors. They paused, looking around. The girl noticed me and elbowed her companion who looked in my direction.

"What are you two doing out at this time of night?" I asked them.

"We were coming back from the library and got loss," the girl answered, quietly.

Before I could say anything, I heard another voice behind me.

"Shelly, Sheldon there you are," Sharee Saunders, a Ravenclaw in my year, said coming up the corridor. Sharee was a Prefect also.

"They're loss," I told her as she came to a stop beside me.

"They're not the only two," Sharee said, looking at me. "Did you know they're looking for your brother Percy also?"

I looked at her surprised. Other than the two Hufflepuffs and these two I hadn't seen anyone since I left the Gryffindor Common Room. "No, I didn't."

"Yeah. I passed Bill a few minutes ago, and he asked me if I had seen him. Bill said he had gone down to Snape's office when it started getting close to curfew and Percy hadn't come back yet. He found only Snape there and Snape said he let Percy leave at eight o'clock. No one's seen him since. Snape and Professor McGonagall are searching as well all the Prefects that weren't on patrol duty. Even the ghosts were told to keep a look out. We've been telling the others as we meet them."

"Damn," I muttered under my breath. Our Mom was going to shoot both Bill and myself if something happened to him. It looked as if routine patrol duty was no longer routine. "Well, why don't you take these two back to the Ravenclaw dorms," I told Sharee. "I'm going to start looking for Percy."

"Okay. I'm sure he's fine Charlie," Sharee told me. "He probably just got lost."

"You're right," I told her. Still I wanted to find him. As Sharee and the other two Ravenclaws headed in one direction, I started off down the corridor leading toward one of the staircases leading down to the dungeon area of the castle. If he was serving detention with Snape, he would have had to come up from there. Sharee was probably right when she suggested he had just got lost. Probably came up the wrong stair case and didn't recognize where he was. It made as much sense to start in this area as any place else.

Halfway to the staircase I saw Nearly Headless Nick floating down the corridor in my direction.

"Ah, Charlie, Good evening to you. If you're looking for your brother, he's back that way. Tried getting him to follow me so I could lead him to the Gryffindor common room but he won't budge."

"Exactly where's he at, Sir Nick?" I asked relieved.

"Keep going to the next corridor on your right. Turn there and you'll find him next to Emeric the Evil's statue."

"Thank-you, Sir Nick."

"Anytime, Charlie. I'm going to go see who else I can find to let them know young Percy has been located. He's gotten the castle quite in an uproar."

As Nick floated away down the corridor, I followed his direction. Sure enough I spotted the statue he was talking about. I heard sobs coming down the corridor as I made my way down it. Reaching the statue, I looked down. Percy was huddled against the wall and the base of the statue. He had his knees drawn to his chest, arms resting on his knees and his head buried in his arms. He didn't even look up as I approached.

"You get lost?" I asked as I sat down next to him.

"I can't do anything right," he muttered.

"It's a big castle," I told him, reaching out to put my arm around his shoulders. "I've gotten lost a few times myself over the years."

"So, I'm sick of hearing what you and Bill can and can't do."

"Uh oh," I said softly, having a good feeling about just what those words meant. "Have the teachers been judging and comparing you to me and Bill all day?"

Percy looked up, a look of surprise on his face. The bruised chin and tears made him look miserable. "How did you know?"

"I have an older brother too, you know. My first semester, that's all I heard. 'I'm expecting a lot from you, Charlie. Your brother was brilliant at this subject.' 'Bill was one of my best students.' My personal favorite was 'Get Bill to show you how to tell time so you may actually arrive at the beginning of the class.'"

"Bet that last one was Snape," Percy muttered, wiping his tears away.

"Yeah, that it was. I sometimes arrived late to his class just to bug him. Of course the fact that I had none of Bill's talent at potion-making irked him too."

"So, I've heard."

"Hear you're not having the best of luck with Snape yourself," I said thinking of Percy's detention. "What did he make you do?" I might not have had his class but I did know where his office was and Professor or not, I wasn't going to let him treat Percy unjustly.

"Just lines," Percy said softly.

"For two hours!" I had thought Snape would have had Percy helping with some sort of sorting or cleaning up to do with his potion ingredients. That's what he tended to do during his detention. I had never heard any of the teachers having students write lines for two hours. Not to mention, he probably would have had him there later if not for the curfew. "That's ridiculous."

"I was late," Percy said.

"Not from your doing from what I've heard," I said, lividly.

"Charlie let it drop. It's not a big deal. Besides you getting involved can only make things worse. I don't know how many times he said he hoped I didn't take after you tonight," I heard the resentment in his voice and understood it, having been compared to Bill on numerous occasions. I had long ago learned not to even bothering to live up to my older brother academically. That was where Bill's talents laid. I shined out on the Quidditch Pitch and I was quite happy with that identity.

"I don't know what to tell you Percy, except hang in there. Give them a few weeks, and they'll be judging them for you and not based on me or Bill. Although, you've already made an impression on McGonagall. She told me about your feat in her class at lunch time. Not often McGonagall's impressed by what a student does."

I saw Percy turning a little pink.

"I'd still rather go home," he said though. "Tomorrow is going to be a disaster."

"Why do you say that?"

"My first class is Flying. Madame Hooch will probably think I'm a natural like my older brother."

_She's in for a surprise_, I thought to myself but wisely didn't say anything. I had attempted to teach Percy how to fly already. We hadn't been successful. Percy had ended up with so many bumps and bruises that it took forever for me to convince Mom I hadn't beat him up.

"Oh, it won't be that bad. A lot of the first years have no clue how to ride a broomstick."

"Yeah, but none of them have to live up to the great Gryffindor Seeker Charlie Weasley," he said bitterly. Evidently that was something else Percy had been hearing a lot about and probably not just from the teachers.

"It'll get better, Perce." I told him again. "You'll see. In no time you'll have made your own mark on the school."

"Already have. Class Klutz."

"It can't be that bad," I told him, although I knew those words weren't exactly true. Even the kids in my class had been joking about him being tripped in the Great Hall. Well, they had been until I had threatened to hex them. My brothers and I picking on Percy was one thing, but I wasn't going to let anyone else do it.

"I just want to go home," he said softly.

I put my other arm around him and wrapped him in a hug. I could see Bill's point about taking Mom more seriously about looking out for our little brother. He seemed absolutely miserable. Still, I knew he was more than capable of doing the course work. Would probably outshine both Bill and myself in that area once he got comfortable here.

I had overheard my parents talking more than once about Percy and that he seemed to show more potential than the rest of us. I think that idea scared Mom some. Powerful wizards had a tendency to end up on the dark side. Odd things tended to happen when wizards and witches were young - before we knew how to control our abilities. Still, both our parents had both spent more time trying to teach Percy to control his magical abilities than they had any of the rest of us. I was starting to think they might have reason to be concerned. The fact that he had managed to transfigure the matchstick to a needle within fifteen minutes was an indication of his potential. That little feat had taken me two lessons to perfect. I knew our parents wanted Percy here at Hogwarts for proper training and it would take an awful lot for them to pull him out.

Not for the first time, I realized what a blessing his easy-going nature was. That he had a real compassion for others. If I were him, I'd have been busy plotting against that kid given him a hard time, not wanting to just go home.

"Things will get better," I found myself telling him again. I hugged him close for a few minutes before helping him to his feet. It was already past curfew and I was sure not only Bill but Professor McGonagall would be waiting for us at Gryffindor Tower.

**Oliver's POV:**

I listened attentively to Madam Hooch. This was the class I had been looking forward to since my arrival at Hogwarts. Yeah, I had already had some practice with Robs broom and had to admit that I wasn't too shabby at it. Still, learning the proper technique could only help me get better, which in turn would make me a better Quidditch player. Maybe I had no real chance of making the team this year but I still wanted to make a decent showing on Friday. Charlie Weasley would still be Captain next year and a disastrous tryout this year could leave a bad impression for next year's tryout. I thought about skipping next year but then I was concerned that Charlie wouldn't think I was serious enough about the game.

"Okay now students, stand to the side of your brooms. Summon your brooms to your hand by saying 'up' in a firm voice, like this." Madam Hooch stood next to her broom and held her hand open above it. "Up," she said and the broom left the ground and went expertly into her hand. "Now you all try it."

The Slytherins and my fellow Gryffidors all looked from Madam Hooch to our broomsticks sitting on the ground. I'd never actually attempted to summon the broom. Rob had always just had me start from holding the broom.

Taking a deep breath, I gave it a try. "Up," I said looking down at my broom. It twitched a little but didn't leave the ground. "Up," I commanded again. The broom hovered a little but then settled itself back on the grass, seemingly content to stay there. Next to me, Emily and Percy's brooms weren't even moving at all.

I glanced across to wear the Slytherins stood in a line facing us. It didn't look as if any of them were having much luck either. Marcus looked kind of frustrated. Smiling at his lack of success, I glanced back at my broomstick. I was going to get this thing to come to me.

"Up!"

To my surprise the broom came up off the ground and hovered below my hand. I grasped it, feeling a huge grin come to my face.

"Very good, Wood," Madam Hooch said from her spot at the end of the line where she could watch the progress everyone was making.

Grinning I looked around. Others had their brooms hovering but no one else had managed to coax them into their hands yet. Stealing a glance at Percy, I saw that his broom wasn't so much as twitching.

On the other side of Percy, Jason's broom finally flew up into his hand. He was the second to do so.

"Not the teacher's pet in this class, huh, Weasley," I heard him whisper.

"Lay off him," I told Jason as Percy's broom decided to finally leave the ground. The broom handle rose up, hit Percy in the nose and then settled back on the ground as if it had never moved. "Are you okay?" I asked him as Jason laughed on the other side. I heard snickers across from us too. I glanced over to see Marcus, Darin and a few other Slytherins looking at us.

"Fine," Percy muttered, glancing down at his broom murderously.


	7. Chapter 7

**Bill's POV:**

Having a free period first thing the next morning, I first headed up to the Owlery. After staying up late and working on it, I had finally figured out what to tell my Mom. I started out telling her a little about my first day of classes and that Charlie was already planning his Quidditch strategy. I left out the fact that he was shirking Prefect duties. As for Percy, I told her he was fine though having trouble adjusting. I told her about the detention and getting lost last night as I wasn't sure if Professor McGonagall would tell her or not but I wasn't taking that chance. I assured her though that I'd keep a close eye on him

Having tied the letter to Lighting's foot and sent him on his way, I headed back downstairs. I headed out to the courtyard. Madam Hooch was out in the front yard with the Gryffindor and Slytherin first years. Most of the broomsticks were still on the ground.

I was curious as to see how the first years would do but it wasn't only that. Percy hadn't seemed to eat much again at breakfast. Despite trying to sound upbeat to my mother, I was concerned about him.

"They're not having much luck out there, huh?" I commented as I took a seat on the wall next to Charlie. My brother looked over at me.

"I don't have class right now," he told me instantly, even though that thought hadn't crossed my mind. Charlie had a tendency to run late but he wasn't one to purposefully skip his classes."As for the class, no - they're not having much luck."

I could tell he wasn't happy with me about getting on him about taking his Prefect duties more seriously yesterday. I didn't regret it though. I wasn't going to let him shirk things just because he felt the Quidditch was more important. Nor was I going to let him put that game before our little brother.

We watched the first years in silence. Slowly, the kids started getting the brooms in their hands. I saw the Slytherin that had tripped Percy up there and was silently glad he was one of the last kids to manage to get their brooms up off the ground. The last one though was Percy. Madam Hooch stood there watching him for about five minutes after everyone else had gotten their brooms off the ground. Other then the broom shooting up quickly, and Percy dodging it, the broom simply refused to come off the ground

"He got hit with it before you showed up," Charlie commented. I looked over, half expecting to see a grin on his face. It wasn't there though. He seemed to be just stating what had happened. I looked back to the class.

Mrs. Hooch seemed to have tired of waiting for Percy as I saw her point to his broom on the ground and then Percy bent down to pick it up. The next part didn't go well at all. Everyone else had their brooms hovering before Percy and then when Percy finally did get the broom to hover he fell off.

"STOP IT."

Madam Hooch's voice carried over to where we sat. The only thing I could think of was that his classmates had been laughing at my brother. The rest of the class didn't go any better for Percy. Though most of the first years seemed to be starting to get the hang of it, Percy wasn't. He fell off the broom twice more.

The bell rang and the first years started back toward the castle. I stood up myself, having Ancient Runes to get to. Not only that, for some reason, I didn't want Percy to know I had been watching. Charlie started walking beside me.

"Think he'll ever get the hang of it?" Charlie asked.

"I sure hope so," I answered as we reached the castle doors. The corridors were crowded with students switching classes. Saying good-bye to Charlie, I headed toward Professor Sprigget's classroom.

I knew this morning class wasn't going to help with Percy wanting to stay. If anything, it was going to make him want to go home more.

The common room was crowded. It might have only been the first days of classes but that didn't matter to our professors. All of us had homework. That didn't mean however, that all of us were doing it.

I was sitting at a table with Rob and Angelica. Rob and I were trying to decipher the pages of runes that Sprigget had asked us to decipher. Angelica, who didn't have Ancient Runes, was practicing Transfiguration. She had a sunflower sitting in front of her. We were supposed to transfigure the sunflower into a white rabbit but she wasn't having much luck. I had managed to turn the sunflower into a yellow rabbit during the class period and as the next Transfiguration was on Friday, I was more concerned with getting Ancient Runes homework out of the way.

To my right, third-year girls were whispering and pointing at various places. After watching them a little I deduced that they were talking about which of their fellow male Gryffindors they thought were cute. I saw various points in Charlie's direction which didn't surprise me any. Even the girl's in my class thought Charlie was good looking. I had been getting requests for me to introduce them to him for the last couple of years and had gotten good at politely declining. Becoming the Gryffindor Seeker had only increased his popularity with the girls at the school.

By the fireplace, a group of second-years had been reading their History of Great Magical Duels book and taking notes. Now they seemed to be switching notes between each other and copying them. More than likely they had all decided to read part of what had been covered in class today and then share notes of the part they read. Not too many people were able to listen to Professor Binns without falling asleep. Even I had taken a nap in his class from time to time. I had dropped the course as soon as I could.

Other students were avoiding school work by playing games. The exploding snaps games were a challenge to tune out as the tiny explosions from the game made it hard to concentrate sometimes. The few games of chess were a bit quieter. Other students sat by themselves, studying or practicing spells.

Percy was at a table across the room, with Emily and Oliver. There were feathers on the table which they were trying to get to levitate. After watching them a little while I realized that only two of them were trying to get the feathers to levitate. Percy could easily accomplish the feat and was actually trying to help the other two. Having been a witness to various flying objects sent through the air at home when the twins had pushed Percy a little too far, the fact that levitating the feather was easy for him came as no surprise. Another first-year Gryffindor, who if I remembered correctly his name was Jason, kept shooting them looks from where he sat. As he wasn't actually doing anything to them, I didn't feel right about doing anything about it but decided to keep an eye on him.

I looked back down at my book. I had only gotten through a half of the page so far. Professor Sprigget had said it took experts two years to translate the three hundred page work we were working on and if the rest of it was anything like the first two pages we had been given I could see why. This was the first real challenge I had run into with the class as the other years I had found the course work for Ancient Runes easy. Rob, who did just as well as I in the class, was also having difficulty. Several spots we had ended up working on together or helping one another out.

"Hey!" Rob called out, making me look up from the page I was trying to translate. He was trying to pull his parchment with his Runes homework on it from the mouth of Angelica's sunflower, which she had manage to give not only a mouth with vicious looking teeth but eyes too.

Angelicas was busy saying spells, trying to turn the sunflower back. Taking my wand out, I said a reversal spell, and the teeth and eyes disappeared. Rob held the mutilated parchment in his hand.

"Sorry, "Angelica said looking abashed as she glanced over at Rob.

"And it would have to eat the part I had written on too," he said looking at the parchment. "Do you know how hard this stuff is?" he asked Angelica.

"I said I was sorry. I didn't purposefully give the sunflower teeth so it could eat your homework."

"How did you get this far in Transfiguration anyway?" Rob asked, pulling out a new piece of parchment.

"I'm starting to wonder that myself," Angelica said, resting her chin on her left hand and gazing at the sunflower.

"Here," I told Rob, pushing my parchment toward him. "Copy what I've got. I'm not much further than you were anyway. I need a break from it anyway as the lines are starting to run together."

"Thanks," Rob said, placing my piece of parchment next to his new one. He set about copying what I had so far.

I looked down at my bag. Several books and their titles were visible. My transfiguration book sat there. Potions. Defense Against the Dark Arts. Legilimency the Power and Responsibility. I pulled the last book out. I'd be lying to say the subject didn't scare me. The thought that I could read people minds was overwhelming. I instantly realized how easy it would be to use it for evil purposes.

There were only three other kids in my class that were in the class, two Ravenclaw girls, and a boy from Hufflepuff from Charlie's year. Dumbledore approached us at the beginning of last year. He had told us he had been watching us since we started at Hogwarts and could see we had the gift. Dumbledore felt it was his responsibility to not only teach us how to use and control the ability but also the great responsibility that having the skill of Legilimency was.

It didn't take me long to realize that I had been using Legilimency unaware for years. There had been times when I knew the twins were up to no good and caught them before they started doing something or just as they started. They often thought I spied on them but I hadn't. Somehow, I just knew. Then there were the flashes of events that I knew about but the memories just didn't seem like my own somehow. Once I got to Hogwarts, I found I had the uncanny ability to know what a teacher was going to ask before they asked it. Of course last year, I realized now that it was because I was reading it from their head beforehand as they were thinking about asking it.

I pulled the Legilimency book from my bag. Our first class was on Friday but Dumbledore had sent us a reading assignment with our letters. I planned on making sure it was completed by our class and right now. The subject seemed the most appealing.

I hadn't read very far though when Emily's cry interrupted me. "Percy!"

I looked up to see Oliver lowering my brother to the floor. Even as those near him started gathering around, I was on my feet and heading across the room. I saw Charlie making his way in that direction too.

"Let me through," I kept telling the Gryffindors that had gathered around Oliver, Emily and Percy. Oliver had eased him to the floor and was kneeling on one side of him. "Percy, can you hear me?" I asked as I knelt down next to my brother.

"What happened?" I heard Charlie ask from above me.

"We were just working on our homework, and he got quiet and pale. Then his eyes were closed and he was falling out of the chair," Emily said.

"Percy!"Looking at him, I saw his eyelids flutter. "Percy!" I tried again. He opened his eyes looking around. I reached out and turned his head so I could look right into his eyes.

"Bill?" he asked softly looking confused. "What happened?"

"I think you fainted," I told him. "How are you feeling?"

"Tired," he told me, a confused look still on his face.

"Let's have Madam Pomfrey take a look at you," I told him picking him up. As I stood up, I glanced at Jolyn Monks, Jennifer and Charlie, the three Prefects that were in the common room. "How about restoring some order in here," I told them.

"But I want . . . " Charlie started saying.

"How about doing your job for once," I told him, instantly regretting the words. I knew Charlie wanted to come, because he was worried about Percy too. Still I didn't think that both of us needed to be down in the hospital wing especially when our two fifth-year Prefects were busy with patrol duty.

Deciding I could apologize later. I headed out of Gryffindor Tower.

An hour later, I headed back to Gryffindor Tower alone. Madame Pomfrey wanted to keep Percy overnight to keep an eye on him. I had told her about noticing that he hadn't been eating that much and she already knew about some of the troubles he had been having adjusting to Hogwarts. She seemed sure that his fainting spell had been brought on by those factors especially after Percy admitted to not eating at dinner, which I hadn't known about due to the fact that I had eaten quickly and then gone to meet with Arnold Jargon, a Hufflepuff, who I had been teamed with to do a presentation within Muggle Studies. I planned on not missing any other meals until I was sure that Percy had adjusted to being here.

Though it took some convincing, we had managed to get Percy to eat a bowl of soup. I had tried to get him to talk to me about how he was feeling, positive that him being troubled about things was why he wasn't eating. Though he had always been a picky eater, he never not ate before and Hogwarts had enough variation of food that there were plenty of things offered that he would eat.

I had stayed with him, until he had fallen asleep. Because of this, the corridors were not well lit, and were deserted as I made my way back to Gryffindor Tower as it was after curfew. The Fat Lady was snoring in her frame.

"Ahem," I said, waking her up. She glared at me, clearly not happy that I had disturbed her slumber.

"The password," she said sleepily.

"Tessera si placet," I replied. The wall swung open. I walked through as she muttered under her breath something about giving students badges and they thought they could get away with anything.

Charlie, Oliver and Rob were the only three still awake when I walked in. All of them looked toward me as I entered.

"How is he?" Charlie asked. The apology that I had been ready to give when I was leaving was now completely forgotten. I had asked Charlie to make sure that Percy ate something during dinner. He obviously hadn't done that.

"He'll be fine. Madame Pomfrey is just keeping him overnight to keep an eye on him," I told him, refraining from getting on his case in front of the other two.

Charlie looked relieved as did the others.

"Okay, Oliver off to bed," Rob told his younger brother. With a nod, Oliver disappeared to the first-year's dormitory as Rob headed toward ours. This left me and Charlie alone.

"I thought I asked you to make sure Percy ate during dinner," I told him.

"I got distracted. Finnigan was trying to tell me how to go about conducting try outs Friday. What's the big deal anyway?"

"The big deal is that Percy didn't eat which is probably why he fainted. I told you he hadn't eaten much at breakfast or lunch."

"I'm sorry, okay. It won't happen again."

"You got that right, because I know not to count on you now," I told him walking past him and heading up the steps that Rob had just taken.


	8. Chapter 8

**Percy's POV:**

Madam Pomfrey released me the next morning in time for me to make breakfast in the Great Hall. I walked into the hall by myself, most of the students already there. Scanning the Gryffindor table, I spotted Oliver about halfway down. Hoping he had saved me a seat, I made my way down the row between the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables.

People at both tables stopped talking as I got closer to them. I tried to ignore it, telling myself I was just being paranoid. When I finally reached him, I saw an empty seat next to him and sank down into it.

"How are you feeling?" Emily asked. She was sitting across from me.

"Fine," I said glancing around the table. I noticed my fellow Gryffindors were shooting glances in my direction. "Can we drop it, please?"

"Sure," she said, sounding a little put off. I made a mental note to talk to her later on when there was no one around and explain things to her. It wasn't that I didn't appreciate her concern. However, I didn't really want to talk about what had happened in the middle of the Great Hall.

I glanced to my left. Both my brothers were watching me. Knowing they were making sure I ate, I helped myself to some of the food in the dishes in the middle of the table. I definitely wasn't feeling hungry though. I was too worried about what could possibly go wrong today.

Raised voices made me look over my shoulder. I noticed Sheldon talking to an older Ravenclaw boy, near the head of their table. We were too far away to actually hear what was being said.

"I wonder what that's about," Oliver commented, looking at the two Ravenclaws too. Most of the kids around us were, including a few from the Slytherin table.

"Do you know who he's talking too?" I asked.

"Chad Murphy. He's the Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain," Oliver answered.

"Well if arguing with Murphy is how he planned on getting a chance to try out for the team, I don't think much of his plan."

Before anything else could be said on the subject, owls flying into the Hall diverted attention from them. Errol dropped an envelope in front of me and continued down the table to Charlie, where he ended up in the bowl of scrambled eggs. Eggs ended up all over Charlie and his friends.

I laughed. Errol had never been the most accurate owl. He was forever crash landing or running into something. Still, he always managed to get our post to us. I was just glad it had happened to Charlie and not me, as kids from the table on either side of us were laughing at the sight too.

I stopped laughing though when Charlie managed to get the envelope Errol had for him out of the bowl of scrambled eggs. It was red. A howler. Mom apparently was not happy with Charlie and I had a sinking feeling why. Charlie looked from the red envelope to Bill a few seats down from him as the hall suddenly got quiet. I noticed Bill holding a red envelope too.

"Open them together," Charlie suggested. The silence made him easy to hear.

Bill nodded. Charlie counted and at the count of three the sound of my mother's voice echoed through the Great Hall.

"BILL/CHARLIE WEASLEY, DIDN'T I ASK YOU TO KEEP AN EYE ON YOUR BROTHER. WHEN PROFESSOR MCGONAGALL WROTE TO ME AND TOLD ME WHAT'S BEEN GOING ON THERE, I WAS NOT PLEASED. IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO HIM, I'M HOLDING YOU RESPONSIBLE."

The two envelopes quit talking and broke up into pieces, the pieces drifting to the table. I looked down at my food in front of me before I met either one of their gazes. The howlers were my fault. Just one more thing I hadn't managed to do right.

Even less hungry than before the mail had come, I picked up my fork and stabbed whatever I had put on my plate. At this point, I didn't really care what I was eating. I just planned on eating enough to keep my brothers off my back.

"Aren't you going to read your letter?" Emily asked me. Conversations had resumed throughout the hall.

"I'll read it later," I said. It was from my Mom. Somehow, I didn't want to know what she had written to me right then.

"Your brothers getting the howlers isn't your fault," Oliver said beside me, seemingly reading my mind.

"Want to go tell them that?" I said completely convinced that they weren't going to see it that way. They were going to blame me for getting in trouble.

"Will you just relax? They're not going to blame you."

"Easy for you to say," I muttered not at all convinced.

Oliver let the matter drop and started talking about the classes we had that day. Emily was looking forward to Astronomy that night. It meant we got an excuse to be out of the Gryffindor Tower past curfew. I just hoped I made it to the class.

**Oliver's POV:**

"It's even creepier without many people down here," I commented as Percy and I made our way down to Snape's classroom after grabbing a quick bite in the Great Hall.

"Try coming down here by yourself," Percy commented.

"How's your chin anyway?" I asked him as we reached the last steps.

Marcus had struck again. On our way down to potions, he had come up behind Percy and pushed him down the last couple of steps. Percy had banged up his chin which had been bleeding pretty good when he and I had walked into Potions just as the bell rang starting class. Being his usual concerned self, Snape had made a comment about not wanting blood all over his classroom and told Percy to go to the hospital wing and not to come back as it would interrupt the class. Instead he wanted him to come back tonight and make-up the missed class work. As I was his partner, he 'suggested' I go with him, which is how we came to be walking back down to his classroom this evening.

"I'm fine. At this rate though I'm going to have permanent bruises," he commented as we walked toward Snape's classroom.

Snape was standing in front of his desk when we walked in, scowling as usual. I suddenly felt like I was in Peter Pan, a story my mother read to me as a kid. Snape was Captain Hook and he was making me walk the plank.

"Have a seat," Snape told us. "I do hope you don't plan on making coming to see me after hours a habit, Mr. Weasley."

"No professor," Percy said quietly beside me as we sat down at one of the front desks.

"As this is make up work, I think it's only fair that you work on something a little harder. As such, I've picked this potion out for you," he told us placing a piece of parchment on the table between us.

"This doesn't even look like something that would be in a first year potion book," I protested as I looked it over.

"Very observant, Mr. Wood. I do believe these are all the extra ingredients you should need," Snape told us putting several patches from his desk down in front of us. "I suggest you get started if you plan on making your Astronomy class on time," he said and then walked around his desk. He sat down and started working on something that he had open on his desk.

"This isn't fair," I said. "I think I'm going to Professor McGonagall."

"He'll only hate you more if you do that," Percy said as he started getting out ingredients we needed that were ones we had for class.

"Fine. What do you want me to do?" I asked him seeing as he seemed to have some clue as to what he was doing.

"Start measuring these out," he said, pushing a few pouches toward me. "Just don't mix any of them yet."

"Got it," I told him picking up the first pouch. Reading its label, I looked for it on the list of ingredients on the parchment to see how much we needed.

We worked steadily for the next hour and a half. We could only hope we were doing it right as the directions Snape had given us gave us no indication as to what the potion should look like or be doing at the different steps like our text book did. We hadn't caused any explosions nor bubbled it over so I was taking that as a good sign.

"We're done Professor," I said finally, a part of me just wanting to be able to escape his classroom.

Silently, Snape came from around the desk. I didn't miss the smirk on his face. He had given us the potion with the thought that we'd mess it up. Suddenly, I was fervently hoping that we had gotten in right.

As he peered into the cauldron, the smirk faded. I resisted the urge to smirk myself. We had evidently done better than he had expected us too. "Acceptable," he told us. "You're dismissed."

Snape headed back to his desk. Percy and I cleaned up and hightailed it out of there. We still had more than enough time to make Astronomy on time.

* * *

"Something else you're not so good at, huh Weasley. Maybe it's because of those glasses," Jason jeered as we walked down from the Astronomy Tower. Beside him, Sky Fable, laughed. Jason and Sky had gotten to be pretty good friends over the last couple of days.

Both Percy and I had done okay, though neither of us had an easy time pinpointing the celestial objects, Professor Narsicuss, had given us. We had eventually located all but one of them though. Emily had been the only one in our class to find all of them. As such, she had been excused from the essay we had been assigned for homework. The essay was on the celestial objects we hadn't been able to find. I was glad I only had one. Some of my classmates had three or four.

"Lay off, Jason. It's not like you found them all," I told him.

"Yeah, well you're only sticking up for him so he'll get you through potions."

"Why you little . . ." I said turning to go after Jason. Emily grabbed my arm though.

"He isn't worth it Oliver. Come on," she told me tugging on my arm. Glaring at Jason over my shoulder as I did so, I followed her.

"Go ahead. Hide behind the girl," Jason called after me.

"You know Jason, you'd think those glasses would help Weasley," Sky commented. Apparently he wasn't going to leave us alone.

"Nah. Come on, they don't even help him see to walk. Who knows why he even bothers wearing them the way he goes tripping over everything."

"Ignore them," Emily told both of us. She still had a hold of my arm. Looking over at Percy I could see Jason and Sky's comments were getting to him by the storm cloud that had appeared on it.

"Be careful when you get to Gryffindor Tower," Sky called up. "Don't want you tripping up the steps."

"Yeah, you never know when they might decide to reach out and . . ."

Jason's words trailed off as a wind filled the corridors which blew out the torches lining the corridors. We were plunged into darkness. The girls in the group screamed

"What was that?" Collin asked from somewhere behind us.

"There's probably just a broken window somewhere," I said reasonable trying to reassure myself as much as my classmates. I took out my wand. Rob had taught me the spell to light the end of my wand already. "Lumos," I said.

The tip of my wand lit up, casting an eerie glow on my fellow Gryffindor and myself. Most of my classmates seemed just a bit spooked. All except for Percy. I couldn't read the expression on his face but he didn't look at all concerned that the torches had suddenly gone out.

"Come on, let's get back to the dorms before we get in trouble for being out in the corridors too long," I said to everyone. Professor Narsicuss had instructed us to go straight back to Gryffindor Tower as we were already out past curfew. I stepped past a couple of my classmates to take the lead as we all headed back to the dorms.

The common room was almost empty. Bill, Rob and Angelica were the only ones still there. A sunflower was on the table they were at and Angelica had a look of pure frustration on her face.

"I'm never going to get this," she was saying as we walked in.

Most of my fellow classmates headed for their respective dorms, whispering about what had happened in the corridor. Curious, I headed over to the table the other three were at.

"It's easy," Rob told her. He said the incantation and the sunflower changed to a snowy white rabbit. He quickly changed it back. "Try it again," he told her.

I noticed Percy had come with me over to the table. He was looking over his brother's arm at the school book that lay open on the table.

Angelica took a deep breath and pointing her wand at the sunflower repeated the words Rob had said moments earlier. The Sunflower only sprouted white ears and a fluffy tail appeared on the pot. Rob and Bill both started laughing.

"Oh forget it," Angelica said. "I'm going to bed."

"Suit yourself. Just remember we tried to help you," Rob told her as she turned from the table.

Beside Bill, Percy had his wand out. He pointed it at the sunflower, which still sported the bunny ears and tail, and said the incantation himself. I didn't expect much to happen but a yellow rabbit appeared where the sunflower had been. All four of us looked at him.

"That's not funny, Bill," Angelica said. "I can't believe you would show your brother this just to make fun of me."

"I swear Angelica, I didn't teach him anything," Bill said. "Perce, how did you do that?"

"I just read the textbook," he replied looking down at Bill's book.

"Are you telling me that's the first time you've ever tried that?" Rob asked.

"Yeah. Why?" Percy said starting to look a little scared.

"I can't believe he did it that easily," Rob said impressed.

"If any of you tell anyone that a first year showed me up, I'll strangle the lot of you," Angelica said.

"Like anyone would believe us," Bill replied.

"Did I do something wrong?" Percy asked.

"No, Kiddo," Bill told him putting his arm around Percy. "It's just this spell is supposed to be beyond first year level. It's amazing that you got that close."

"I'm going to go to sleep," Angelica said picking the yellow rabbit up off the table. "Maybe I'll dream about doing this spell right."

"It is getting late," Bill commented. "You two should probably head to bed yourselves."

Percy and I said goodnight to our brothers and headed down the steps to our dorm. Having witnessed that little feat and the remembering the look on Percy's face out in the corridor after the torches went out, I had a suspicion on how those torches had gone out. There was only one person who could confirm that suspicion for me though.

"That wind earlier. It wasn't a broken window was it?"

"It shut Jason and Sky up didn't it," Percy commented.

**Charlie's POV:**

It was Friday morning. Once again, Slytherin and Gryffindor first years had flying class and once again I was perched on the wall. It was Wednesday all over again. Percy was just having no luck.

"How can anyone be that bad?" I asked myself softly.

I glanced away from the class and down to the parchment in front of me. I was making up a sheet to keep notes on for that afternoon's tryouts. If I wanted to start practice on Monday, it meant that I had to make the decision of team members this weekend. I wanted to be prepared so I could make the best possible choice.

Gryffindor tryouts weren't the only Quidditch event being talked about though. The first years in Ravenclaw this year had decided they wanted to at least be able to try out. Chad Murphy had gotten challenged to a match by Sheldon Murdock, a first year I had seen talking with Oliver and Percy over the last couple of days. Sheldon was going to put together a team of first years to play against the Ravenclaw Quidditch Team.

Sheldon had confronted him at the right time to. Right in the middle of the Great Hall. With so many people around, Murphy would have been called a coward if he hadn't taken the challenge. I didn't hold much hope of the first years winning still when Sheldon had approached me about helping them out with a little coaching I couldn't say no. He had guts taking on Murphy and his team. I had to admire him for that.

The problem was, not only were the older students going to have more experience but the Ravenclaw team had only lost one member, their seeker Mandy Shield. The team was already use to playing with one another. The first-years had two days to get use to one another. Of course Murphy was going to have to come up with someone to play seeker before the match on Sunday.

"Weasley you're hopeless," I heard someone call out. I looked up to see Percy on the ground once again.

"Leave him alone, Marcus," I heard Oliver shout back.

I thought about getting involved myself but held back. Somehow I didn't think Percy would appreciate me interfering. Besides, I was sure Madam Hooch wouldn't let things get too far out of hand.

"Maybe he can brew some glue in Potions," another kid said. I couldn't make out who it was. "Gluing himself to the broom is probably . . ."

"That's enough!" Madam Hooch shouted. "Percy are . . ."

The question trailed off as Percy started running off. He was heading away from the castle. He evidently wanted to get as far away from everyone as he could. Stuffing the parchment, ink and quill in my bag quickly, I shoulder the bag and took off after him. I noticed Madam Hooch had started to follow but when she saw me went back to her class.

"Hey Squirt, hold up," I said grabbing a hold of his robes and pulling him to a stop.

"Leave me alone, Charlie," he said struggling to get away from me.

"I don't think so. Percy, you just ran away from a class. Do you realize how much trouble you could get into?" I asked him. I wasn't sure what Madam Hooch would do as other than handing out penalties during the Quidditch matches, I had never seen her discipline anyone.

"I don't care," he said, as I moved to kneel down in front of him. His left eye was black and blue. "I'm never going to learn to ride a broomstick anyway and I'm sick of people laughing at me. I'm not going back."

I had never seen Percy so defiant about anything. Given that I could easily put my little brother over my shoulder and carry him back to the class, it almost made me want to smile. I kept a straight face though. The last thing I needed was for Percy to think I found this amusing.

I tried to think of the best way to handle this. Dragging him back to the class would probably cause more laughs and jeers from his classmates and chances are Percy wouldn't stay. The best thing was probably for him to be away from the others for a while. Give Percy a chance to calm down. I could explain things to Madam Hooch later.

"Come with me then," I told him, standing up and taking a hold of his hand.

"Where are we going?" he asked, though he came along without protest.

"To see Hagrid," I told him. "I haven't had a chance to pay a visit all year and seeing as we're near his Hut anyway, I thought I'd stop in and say hi."

Percy followed me quietly. It didn't take us long to reach the gamekeeper's cabin. I had made friends with Hagrid my first year. He knew a lot about different magical creatures. Creatures which had always fascinated me though not as much as Dragons. Even after I started taking the Care of Magical Creatures Class I had found that Hagrid knew things that Professor Gorbin didn't teach.

"Hey Charlie!" Hagrid called out as he made his way up from the forest, a box in his hand. "Not skipping class, are you?"

"Hi Hagrid. I'm not. My little brother, Percy, is though," I said indicating my little brother.

"Weren't you one of the kids that ending up in the water the day we arrived?" Hagrid asked looking at him. Percy nodded. "With that red hair, I should've known you were a Weasley. Other kids giving you a hard time?"

"That and a broomstick," Percy muttered.

"Yeah, well never cared much for broomsticks myself. Swear they have a mind of their own."

"What's in the box?" I asked.

"Come inside and I'll show you," Hagrid said nodding toward the hut. Curious we followed him inside.

Hagrid sat the box on the table. As Percy and I gathered on either side of him he slowly to the lid off. There laying on some hay, was a baby griffin.

"Wow. A real Griffin!"

"Yeah, there's still a few of them in the woods though most have found other territory. This one's got a broken wing. I plan on getting the little fellow healed on up and releasing him back into the wild."

"Can I help?" I asked eagerly.

"Sure. For starters, why don't you help me bandage the wing. Then I reckon it'll be time for you two to get off to your next class."

Percy watched silently as Hagrid explained and showed me how to set and bandage the Griffin's broken wing. We then placed him carefully back in the box, where he curled up and fell asleep.

"Now he just needs a name. Got any ideas, young man?" Hagrid asked looking down at my brother.

"Hope," he said, his eyes still on the Griffin.

"I like it," Hagrid said. "Hope it is, then."


	9. Chapter 9

**Charlie's POV**:

I was heading to the Great Hall for lunch when I came across Madam Hooch. "Professor Hooch, I was hoping I could have a word with you," I asked her.

"Of course Charlie," she told me looking around. "Let's talk in here," she said, leading me into an empty classroom. "How is Percy? I haven't been able to catch up with him again this morning."

"He's fine," I assured her. "A little discouraged though. I'm sorry I didn't bring him back to class this morning but he was so adamant about not going back. I figured he'd run off again if I did."

"That's fine. The kids were giving him a hard time. Do let him know I expect him on Monday though." I nodded. "He doesn't have your natural talent and now he's so frustrated and his classmates are giving him such a hard time, I'm not sure he'll ever learn. Maybe you could help him?"

"Ah no," I told her. "I already attempted that over the summer. Mom was convinced I beat him up when we came back and he had so many bruises on him."

"Maybe that isn't such a good idea then," she said thoughtfully. "Well, we'll see how Monday goes. What did you want to talk to me about Charlie?"

"Oh. I needed to schedule some times for the Quidditch pitch. The first years have asked me to give them some help before they take on the Ravenclaw team on Sunday."

"Ah yes. I was a bit surprised when I heard about the match but am glad it is happening. I've been telling Flitwick and Snape that they need to let the first years try out for years. Kind of pulling for the first years myself though they don't have much chance of winning. What did you have in mind for practice times?"

"Well, I was thinking this evening if it was possible. Right after Gryffindor try outs would be convenient as well as sometime tomorrow."

"Well you're the only ones scheduled on the Pitch tonight so you can have it as late as you need it. Tomorrow Murphy scheduled it for Ravenclaw from twelve to two but anytime after that."

"Three to five then," I said, figuring we could practice right before dinner.

"Consider it yours," she told me. "Do you know which first years are going to be playing?"

"No," I told her. "I told Sheldon it was his responsibility to put together the team and then I'd help him from there. I would imagine they won't all be Ravenclaws though. Sheldon and Oliver are pretty good friends. I could see Oliver on the team.

"Ah, Mr. Wood. Haven't seen that much talent at flying since you came to Hogwarts. I expect great things from him over his years here."

I nodded. I was holding off my own assessment until I saw him at try outs as I knew Oliver planned on being there.

"Well, I'll let you get to your lunch," Madam Hooch said.

"Thank-you. I'll tell Percy what you said about class on Monday," I assured her.

We left the classroom and went in two different directions. I headed for the Great Hall. I had just walked inside when Murphy was standing in front of me.

"Charlie, just the person I wanted to see," Chad said cheerfully. Other than Quidditch matches I had never had a conversation with Chad Murphy so I instantly knew he wanted something.

"What do you want Murphy?"

"Who says I wanted . . ."

"We're not exactly best of friends so I doubt you wanted to have small talk with me. So, what do you want?"

"Well, as you know Ravenclaw doesn't have a Seeker. I was wondering if you would consider playing for us in Sunday's match."

"Sorry, Murphy but I can't. I think it would be a conflict of interest."

"What do you mean conflict of interest? You can't possibly tell me that your younger brother is playing. From what I hear he can't even stay on a broom," Murphy said with a laugh.

I wanted to slug him. It didn't matter that he was right. That still didn't give him the right to laugh at my brother. The only thing that made me hold back was the fact that we were in the Great Hall and there were way too many witnesses. I didn't need to land myself in detention during the try outs this afternoon.

"No, Percy isn't participating," I told him icily. "However, Sheldon has approached me about giving them all pointers and I agreed."

"You can't be serious. Do you actually think they stand a chance on Sunday?"

"All I can say Chad, is that you better hope that by some miracle they don't beat you because if that happens the Ravenclaw team is going to be the laughing stock of the school. As for a seeker, you'll have to look elsewhere. Maybe Eric would be willing to help you out," I suggested. Eric Kim was Hufflepuff's Seeker.

"Already tried. He told me he was hoping the first years beat us," Murphy said not sounding at all happy. "Says it's not fair that they don't at least get a chance to try out. The nerve."

"Well, that either leaves you Fredrick from the Slytherin team or finding someone in your own house to train. Heard you got practice at twelve tomorrow. That doesn't leave you much time," I told him, side stepping and going around him. After a couple of steps I turned around and addressed him. "Oh, and Chad, just for the record, even if I wasn't helping out the first years I still wouldn't help you out especially not after you laughed at my brother."

I didn't wait for a reply, but instead turned around and headed for the Gryffindor table. I spotted Sheldon and his sister, Shelly, at our table talking with Oliver. Walking past the normal group I sat with, I made my way down to them. I stopped behind my brother's chair.

"Hey, Sheldon. Do you have your players yet?" I asked him.

Sheldon hesitated in answering. He looked to Kathy Moore who was sitting next to Emily. Kathy nodded.

"Yeah, I've got a team," he told me. Kathy must have been the last player he needed.

"Okay. I talked to Madam Hooch. We've got the Quidditch Pitch as late as we want it tonight. Gryffindor tryouts start at five-thirty tonight. As soon as they're complete, we'll see where you guys stand. I've also got the pitch reserved for us from three to five tomorrow."

"Okay. I'll let everyone know. We really appreciate this Charlie," Sheldon said.

"No problem," I told him. I leaned to whisper to my brother. "I need to talk to you later," I told him, needing to give him Madam Hooch's message.

Percy nodded.

"I'll see you guys later then," I told them and headed back up to my other friends.

* * *

I ate a very quick dinner that evening. I wanted to make sure I was the first one out on the Quidditch Pitch that afternoon. I stopped by Madam Hooch's office and got the chest containing the balls for the game and headed out to the pitch.

The stands were as empty as the field but I still felt the same surge of excitement walking out onto the field as I did before a match. I just loved being out here. Loved how open the field felt. Putting the chest and my school bag down on one side of the pitch, I climbed on my broom to make a few circles of the field. Nothing felt as good as the feel of the wind against my skin and through my hair as I circled the pitch.

Not wanting to get caught joy riding, I touched down next to my things the second time I came around to them. Setting the broom down next to my bag, I got out the parchment I had set up to take notes on along with my quill and ink. I had divided the parchment into two halves - the top half set aside for notes on candidates for Chasers and the bottom half devoted to my notes for the candidates for the Beater position. Each half of the paper had a column for positive and negative comments.

I tucked these items into the pockets of my robes and turned to the chest, opening the lid. The bludgers were trying to get free as usual. I wasn't about to let those two balls out until we were ready for them. They could be a menace and I didn't want somebody accidently getting hit by one. That was why I had decided to look for my two Chasers first. By doing that I could get rid of the prospects who had no right being out on the Quidditch pitch in the first place and were the ones at greater risk of getting hurt. Then I could release the Bludgers with fewer people on the field.

"Have you thought about what I was telling you the other night, Weasley?"

I didn't have to look up, to see who it was that was joining me on the field. There was no missing Derek Finnigan's arrogant tone.

"Don't start with me, Finnigan, or you'll find me looking at new candidates' for a Keeper too."

"Sure you will. You already know you're in trouble with the team already this year. You're not going to replace me when you know I can do the job."

"Are you sure about that?" I countered. The idea of replacing Derek was looking better by the minute.

"So what's the game plan?" Derek asked, changing the subject.

"I'll let you know when Bill and Rob get here," I told him not wanting to explain myself multiple times. I checked my watch. It was 5:25. Tryouts would begin in five minutes. Looking in the direction of the school I saw a group of Gryffindors heading in my direction. I didn't see Bill or Rob among them. "After the trouble he's been giving me these last couple of days, he better show up on time," I muttered under my breath.

"What was that?" Derek asked.

"Nothing," I told him. I noticed Percy and Emily Spinnet heading up the steps into the stands. They were probably there to support Oliver. I had yet to catch up to Percy when he was by himself today. I thought about going over now and decided against it. With it being so close to the start of tryouts, it would either be rushed or make me start tryouts late. Hopefully, I could catch him after Gryffindor try outs.

A few minutes later Bill and Rob appeared and I told my three teammates what my game plans for the tryouts were. First I had all the candidates fly a couple of laps. I figured that would help me weed out some of the ones who thought they could fly but really couldn't. It helped as I sent three second year kids off the field along with Jason Goyle and Sky Fable, two first years who were there. The only first year left on the pitch was Oliver.

I tested the Chasers first. It didn't take long to see that I had two stand outs in the group. Both were fourth years. Trudy Funke made every shot she took at Derek who was attempting to block their shots. Trent Jinx only missed two shots. Both of them seemed to work well with Rob. There were a couple of others that were possibilities too and I wrote their names down on the parchment to consider.

Next up were the beaters. By now it was just the four members of the team and the five candidates for the Beater position, one of which was Oliver. I was glad I had put this part off until last. With a word of caution to everyone on the field, I let the Bludgers lose.

Unlike the Chasers, there were no stand outs. Only one candidate, a second year who kept ducking the Bludger instead of trying to hit it, was a definite out. Jennifer Chadwick, who hadn't even bothered to try out for the team since our third year, was actually proving very effective. I couldn't help but wonder what she was doing out here this year. There was also Alan Starlight, a fifth-year who had been to tryouts every year so far but had never quite made it. Oliver was actually given a pretty good showing of himself.

"Your brother's pretty good," I whispered to Rob as we watched from the sidelines.

Rob nodded. "You should see him playing as Keeper. He could probably give Derek a run for his money."

His comment made me pause to think. Would having Oliver try the Keeper position make Finnigan a little more cooperative or cause me more problems? I decided against it. Derek was staying in line. He hadn't made one comment since we had started. There was also no reason to drag Oliver into the middle of my problems with the current Keeper.

Not long after that, I called an end to tryouts. I reminded those left that I would be posting the team roster by Sunday afternoon. As the Gryffindors started vacating the field, I turned to Bill and Rob. "Can either of you help me out? I told the first years I'd give them some help getting ready for Sunday's match."

Bill looked like he'd rather strangle me than help me. Evidently he was still upset with me from the other day.

"Sure," Rob said. "I might as well try to make sure I've got something to cheer for on Sunday. With Oliver on the team, I couldn't cheer for the Ravenclaws even if I wanted to," he commented, directing the last part of the comment to his little brother who was still on the team.

"Bill?" I asked looking at my brother.

"Yeah, I can stay for a little while," he finally said, not sounding at all happy about it.

"Thanks," I said. I turned toward the stands to see six first years making their way out of the stands. Like the Gryffindor first years who had tried out, they all had school brooms in their hands. Up in the stands I still saw Percy and Emily along with a few other curious onlookers. "I'll be right back," I told Rob and Bill as I headed toward some steps leading up into the stands.

I headed across the stands toward where Percy and Emily were sitting a few rows up. "Percy, I want to talk to you for a few minutes," I called to him, motioning him toward me. Not looking at all happy about it, he got up and made his way toward me.

"I talked to Madam Hooch this afternoon," I told him when he was standing next to me. "You're not in trouble for running out this morning, but she does expect you in class on Monday."

"I know. Professor McGonagall knows about it too. She's already told me that another missed class will result in a detention. Detention or not, I'm not going back. It's a lost cause and I'm sick of the others laughing at me."

"Percy, you've got to go back. It's a required class for first years whether you like it or not. You're lucky you didn't get a detention for running off this morning."

"I'm not going, Charlie," he told me, sounding very adamant. "What's the worse they can do - expel me and send me home. Anything is better than that class," he told me and with that turned and headed back up to where Emily was still sitting.

I stood there and stared at him for a few moments. I couldn't believe it. Percy had never taken a stand like that. He had always been the one in the family that tended to go along with things just to keep the peace. It gave me an idea of just how miserable he was. I also knew that I was in over my head. Much as I hated to do it, I was going to have to tell Bill what was going on and seek his advice. I just hoped he knew what to do.

Turning I headed back down to the field. Right now, I had a group of students who deserved my undivided attention. I would grab Bill after the practice and tell him what was going on. We had until Monday to figure out how to convince Percy to go back to Madam Hooch's class.

"Is everything okay?" Bill asked me as I joined him on the field. Rob was with the group of first years making a fairly slow circle of the pitch. I could see he was given pointers to different people but was thankful that it looked like Sheldon had gotten a team together that were at least decent flyers.

"I'll fill you in after this practice," I told him. Sticking two fingers in my mouth, I let out a whistle. Rob looked in my direction and I motioned him over. It didn't take long for the group to cross the pitch and touch down in front of me. "Okay, we'll concentrate on basics tonight. Make sure everyone understands the rules of the game and figure out what positions everyone is going to be playing. Oliver, your brother says you do pretty good at playing Keeper."

"I guess," he said with a shrug.

"Okay," I said, "First I want everyone to introduce themselves so I know everyone's name. Then I'm going to go over the rules of the game so that everyone is on the same page and no one isn't asking a question they should be asking because they're afraid of looking stupid."

We did just that. Oliver and Kathy were the only two Gryffindors there and I already knew their names as well as Sheldon. Sheldon's sister Shelly was there as well as two other Ravenclaw's, Carter Penn and Cindy Snorks. The seventh player was Charles Sykes who was a Hufflepuff. After making sure I remembered everyone's names, I went through the rules and basic tactics of the game. I saw a lot of nodding and everyone seemed to be following what I was saying. I was starting to think that maybe this wouldn't go too bad.

"Okay, Oliver I want you in front of the hoops. Let's see how you do. Rob why don't you defend the other hoop. Shelly, Carter and Charles you'll be one team. You're scoring goal will be the hoops Oliver is defending. Sheldon, Kathy and Cindy you'll try to score against Rob. I want to see how well you all do handling the Quaffle and scoring. We won't release the Bludgers or the snitch yet."

I was hoping not to have to take any of the first years to the hospital wing because they got hit with a Bludger. Somehow I didn't think this group was ready for dealing with the Bludgers.

With Bill's help, I kept watch on the play for the next twenty minutes. Shelly and Charles managed each to score once. Other than that Oliver managed to block all of their shots. Cindy even managed to get the Quaffle past Rob once for a score. They weren't all that bad. Of course the Ravenclaw team was going to be more of a competition and the Bludgers made the game much harder.

Carter was easily the best flyer out there, with the exception of maybe Oliver who seemed at home in front of the hoops. Out of curiosity I had Rob take a couple of shots on his brother. Out of six shots, Oliver only let two go by. I made a mental note of that just in case Derek got on my nerves too much this season. Not to mention, I'd need to find a new Keeper next year.

I let the Bludgers go toward the end of practice to get an idea on who could handle the bats and still manage to fly the best. It proved some interesting. After two swings at a Bludger I brought Shelly off the field. She had fallen off in her first attempt and almost unseated herself on the second swing. She was definitely going to have to be a Chaser. Nobody else fell or got off the brooms although Sheldon did have a Bludger glance his shoulder as it went by.

I called an end to the practice an hour after we had started. The light was fading, and the Bludgers getting harder to see. As the first years touched down in front of me, I had to admit I was impressed. They did much better than I had thought they would.

"Okay, everyone. Here's the positions I think you should play. Oliver you'll be Keeper. Shelly, Charles and Cindy will be the Chasers. Kathy and Sheldon you two had the best luck with the bats, you'll be the Beaters. Charles that leaves you to play Seeker. We'll release the Snitch for you tomorrow so you have some time to practice. Okay then, three o'clock tomorrow evening. I expect all of you to be on time. You still have a lot of work to do if you expect to even stand a chance against the Ravenclaw team."


	10. Chapter 10

**Bill's POV**:

"So what's going on between you and Percy?" I asked Charlie as I grabbed one side of the chest with the Quidditch balls in it. Charlie had the other side and with it between us and our brooms in our other hands we headed back up to the castle.

Charlie sighed beside me. I was half expecting him to put it off again but he finally started talking. "I was watching the flying class again this morning. He isn't getting any better and his classmates aren't getting any nicer. He ran off from class."

"I hope you went after him," I said. I was still a little miffed a Charlie for not keeping an eye on him at dinner yesterday though not as angry as I had been last night. Still, I wasn't going to rely on Charlie for anything when it came to Percy. As far as I was concerned I was on my own.

"Of course I did, Bill. He was so determined about not going back though that I didn't force the issue then. I figured doing that would have only made a scene and made a bad situation worse."

I nodded. Not that I liked the idea of Charlie letting Percy skip class but he did have a point. Dragging him to class would only give his classmates more fuel. That was the last thing we needed to do right now.

"Madam Hooch, and apparently Professor McGonagall too, are willing to over look this morning but not further missed classes. Percy said that Professor McGonagall told him that another missed class will result in a detention. He told me that he didn't care and wasn't going back and I'm at a loss of how to make him go. I think he might actually see this as his way out of Hogwart's. Got any ideas?"

"Not right off hand," I told him, wondering how we could possibly get our little brother to go to flying class without embarrassing him further. I knew Mom would kill me, if Percy got expelled from Hogwarts for missing classes. "I'll think of something though," I assured him, bound and determined that Percy would be in Madam Hooch's class come Monday morning. "Just let me handle it," I told him.

"I'm willing to help, Bill."

"No. I can handle it myself," I told him.

"Come on! I made one mistake. I said I was sorry."

"This is Percy we're talking abut. After what happened, how can you expect me to trust you? For all I know something with the Quidditch team will come up and you'll forget all about him."

"That's not fair, Bill!" Charlie told me, his anger clearly written on his face.

"If the shoe fits," I told him as we reached Madam Hooch's office.

We deposited the chest in her office and then Charlie stormed off in the direction of Gryffindor Tower. I started feeling a little guilty. Maybe I was being too hard on him. Still, this was important. This was Percy we were talking about. He had already landed in the hospital wing once because Charlie hadn't done as I asked. I'd handle this myself.

I walked to Gryffindor Tower at a normal pace. After a brief delay at the entrance - the Fat Lady had been chatting with one of her friends in another portrait and wasn't happy about having to come back to her own - I walked into the common room. It being Friday night, very few people were even trying to study.

Charlie had joined his friends, who were playing exploding snaps at one of the tables. Wanting to get some work done on my Ancient Runes homework, I headed upstairs to the dormitory. It was much quieter up there, and I noticed I wasn't the only one who had retreated upstairs. Carl Sherman and Bart Gentry were in the dormitory. They were sitting on Bart's bed, one of their school books opened up in between them. As neither of them looked up as I entered the room, I didn't disturb them.

I walked to my bed, and took off both my robes and shoes. Sitting indian style on the bed, I got out my Ancient Runes homework, and got started. My mind wasn't really on ancient runes though. Instead, my thoughts kept drifting to my younger brother.

I could understand Percy not wanting to go to class. Who wants to go do something that they're no good at? I had made the mistake of trying Divinations in my third year. What a mistake! That class had been a waste of my time. I hadn't even gotten through a week before I was in Professor McGonagall's office begging her to let me drop it. The thing was though, Percy didn't have that option. The classes the first year's were taking were all required courses. It wasn't until third year that we got some choice over what courses we took.

So that left me with the problem of convincing Percy that he had to go back to the class. Maybe if he was a little better at it, then he would feel more comfortable going to class? I had a lot of homework this weekend but Percy was more important. Maybe if I spent some time with him, trying to teach him to fly then he might start getting the hang of it? He sure couldn't get any worse from the sounds of it.

With that decided, I went back to my homework. I was actually able to get through most of it, before my other classmates started filing upstairs to get ready for bed. Not wanting to disturb anyone, I put away my work so I could get ready for bed myself. First though, I decided to check and make sure everything was in order throughout the tower.

**_The next morning_:**

After spending a few hours with Arnold finishing up our presentation for Monday's class, I went in search of Percy. I checked up in Gryffindor Tower first. He wasn't there, so I grabbed my broom, and started looking elsewhere for him. I looked in every spot I could think he might be. He was nowhere to be found. Finally, I came across Oliver, Sheldon, Shelly, and Kathy sitting together in the courtyard. The two guys were clearly going over the basics of Quidditch with the two girls again.

"Hey, Oliver, do you know where Percy got to?"

Oliver looked up at me. "Hi, Bill. He said something about heading down to Hagrid's hut last time I saw him. I don't know if he's still down there or not though."

"Okay, thanks. I'll try there," I replied, turning from them as they resumed their conversation.

I left the courtyard and made my way in the direction of Hagrid's Hut. Though I had seen it from a distance, I had to admit I had never been near the place. Just never had a reason to. Since meeting him my first year at Hogsmeade Station, I never had any other reason to interact with Hogwart's gamekeeper. I knew Charlie had though. Charlie and Hagrid shared the same fascination with magical creatures. Somehow, I figured that Charlie was somehow involved in Percy being with Hagrid.

I reached the hut, without any sign of my little brother. There was smoke coming out of the chimney, so I knocked on the door. I heard a chair scrapping across the floor and then Hagrid's booming voice. "Coming."

Moments later, the door was opened and Hagrid stood there, filling the whole doorway. I looked up at the gamekeeper.

"Hey," Hagrid said cheerfully. "Bill, right?"

"Yes," I said, wondering how he knew my name. Though I knew he wouldn't hurt me, Hagrid's size was still intimidating. I felt my heart skip a beat, even as I forced out the next words. "I- I was looking for my brother, Percy. Is he here?"

"Yeah, he's here," Hagrid answered, either not noticing or choosing to ignore my nervousness. "Come on in," he said stepping aside. Taking a deep breath, I entered Hagrid's hut. "Percy's been keeping me company this morning."

Stepping inside, I saw Percy sitting at Hagrid's oversize table. A griffin, with a wrapped wing, sat perched on Percy's shoulder.

"Hi, Bill," Percy said quietly and uncertainly. Almost as if he thought I was going to be mad at him for being with Hagrid.

"Percy might not have your brother's Charlie's love of magical creatures, but Hope sure seems to like him," Hagrid said, as he closed the door behind me.

Hope? It took me a minute to realize that he must've been referring to the griffin. I had to admit that the creature did seem quite content sitting upon my brother's shoulder.

"Why do you have your broom with you?" Percy asked suspiciously. I could tell he knew that something was up.

"Because you and I are going to go practice," I told him. Percy immediately started shaking his head. "I know you ran out on class yesterday," I continued, using a stern voice but not raising it. "I also know that McGonagall has told you that further missed classes will result in detentions."

"I don't care. She can give me as many detentions as she wants. I'm not going back to that class."

"You're going back, even if I have to put you over my shoulder and take you there myself," I told him, knowing deep down that I wouldn't actually carry out that threat. I could never put him through that humiliation. I was hoping he would take me seriously though. "I'm not about to listen to Mom and Dad lecture me about how I should have made sure had you gone to class and it's my fault that you got expelled. It's not going to happen, Percy."

"I can't go back," he said looking down at the table. The griffin leaned over and rubbed the top of its head against his cheek, as if trying to comfort him. "They'll all laugh at me."

"Not if you learn how to stay on the broomstick this weekend."

"Like that's going to happen," he muttered. I just barely heard the words.

"Now, Percy, your brother has a point. You can't just choose not to go to class," Hagrid said softly. My brother looked over at him. "If nothing else, think of Hope. He's going to miss you if you get expelled."

Percy looked from Hagrid to the griffin perched on his shoulder. I saw a slight smile come to Percy's face as Hope let out a funny cackling sound.

"Okay, I'll do it for Hope," he said. He gently took the griffin in his hands and placed her in a large wooden crate on the floor next to the table. "Let's get it over with," he said standing up.

"If you practice behind my hut, no one should see you. Very few students come wondering down here," Hagrid told us, as I put my arm around Percy's shoulder and started leading him to the door.

"Thanks Hagrid," I replied, hoping he knew that I meant that for more than just the suggestion about where to practice. If it hadn't been for Hagrid, I had a feeling I would still be trying to convince him.

"No problem," Hagrid said as he stood in the door way, looking out at us. "Good luck, Percy."

"I need more than good luck," Percy said quietly.

A half hour later, I was starting to agree with that assessment. The only thing he had managed to do successfully, was to get the broom to come up off the ground and into his hand. Even that had taken quite a few tries to accomplish, not to mention he was getting a black eye from being hit with the broom again.

I held my breath as Percy tried once again to kick up off the ground. The broom rose off the ground a few feet. I thought he might have it, but no sooner had I opened my mouth to give him further instructions then the broom shot forward, sending Percy tumbling to the ground.

"Are you okay?" I asked him, starting toward him.

Percy didn't answer as he got to his feet. He simply started walking toward the castle.

"Percy, where are you going? We're not done here yet."

"I am!"

I rushed after him, grabbing hold of the sleeve of his robe. "Come, on! You're making progress," I said, trying to sound encouraging which was a challenge because I was starting to get discouraged myself.

"Forget it, Bill," Percy said, pulling his sleeve from my grass. "I'll attempt to fly a broomstick again, when you get your ear pierced," he told me, and then started walking back toward the castle.

I didn't follow him. Instead, I headed back to where my broom laid abandoned on the ground. Picking it up, I thought of Percy's last words.

_"I'll attempt to fly a broomstick again, when you get your ear pierced."_

I wasn't about to give up yet, and his words had just given me an idea. Broomstick in hand, I head back toward the castle. It was getting close to lunch time anyway. Hopefully, I'd be able to find Jolyn in the Great Hall.

* * *

"Are you sure about this Bill?" Jolyn asked me for about the umpteenth time, as she held the ice pack to my right ear lobe.

"Positive," I answered her, purposely not looking at the table where she had put her supplies. I wasn't about to admit to her that the only thing that had me remotely afraid of what she was about to do was the needle. I hated needles. Any kind of needle.

"Okay," she said. I could tell by her voice that she still couldn't believe I had asked her to do this. "That should be numb enough, now," she said, taking away the ice pack. "Last chance, to back out," she told me a little bit later. Though I didn't look, I knew she now had the needle in her hand.

"Just get it over with," I told her. "I told Charlie that I'd help him out with the practice this evening and I don't want to be late." Given how things were between us right now, I knew he wouldn't let me slide with even a minute late.

Even with the numb ear lobe, it still hurt as she pushed the needle through my ear lobe. I bit my lower lip and closed my eyes, determine not to cry out. It being Saturday afternoon, at least the Gryffindor Tower was empty except for the two of us.

"All done," Jolyn said a few minutes later. "Here, take a look."

I opened my eyes, and looked in the hand-held mirror she had in her hand. In my right ear was now a little gold ball. It doesn't actually look that bad, I thought to myself.

"Not bad," I told her. "Thanks."

"Now don't forget those instructions I gave you, or we may both be in trouble when you're in the hospital wing trying to explain an infected ear," Jolyn told me, as she started gathering up her things on the table.

"I won't," I assured her, not wanting to have to deal with an infected ear to begin with. I glanced at my watch. Ten minutes of three. "I better get moving," I said, standing up. I grabbed my broom which was leaning up against another chair. "Thanks again, Jolyn."

"You're welcome, though I'd still like to know whatever possessed you to actually go through with it. You're the last guy who I would have figured on having a pierced ear."

"Maybe I just like to keep people guessing," I called to her, as I walked out of the tower.

I ran most of the way down to the Quidditch pitch. Everyone else was already there, including a very impatient Charlie.

"I thought you weren't going to show," he commented as I joined them, slightly out of breath.

"Nah, I was just trying to finish something up," I told him, casually.

"Are you sick or something?" Rob asked me, staring at me.

"No, why?" I asked. I could see Charlie now looking at me curiously too.

"Let's just say you're the last person I would have expected to see with an earring," Rob said, echoing Jolyn's sentiments.

I shrugged, not wanting to make a big deal about it. I had just done what I thought was necessary.

"Mom's going to kill you," Charlie commented.

"Yeah, well I'll live until Christmas as long as someone keeps his mouth shut," I told him. "Don't you have a practice to start?"


	11. Chapter 11

**Percy's POV:**

My body ached, as I climbed out of bed Sunday morning. _~Flying is definitely for the birds, ~ _I thought to myself. Muggles had the right idea with using broomsticks to clean with. They definitely weren't a good mode of transportation.

"You okay?" Oliver asked me as we got ready.

"Yeah. Just sore."

"Must have been that truck that ran over him," Jason quipped.

"Don't you mean broomstick?" Sky asked. The two of them laughed at their own joke. Collin and Jake, the other two boys in the dormitory joined in.

I tried to pretend as if I didn't hear them. After all, I had lived with George and Fred for so long, I should've been use to the teasing by now. Yet, it still bothered me.

I quickly finished getting ready, and hurried out of the dormitories. Oliver followed me, still trying to get his robes on as we went down the stairs.

"Perce, don't let them get to you."

"Easy for you to say," I snapped. "Everybody likes you."

As soon as the words were out, I regretted them. Oliver and Emily were the only two besides my brothers at the school who had been nice to me. I should be thankful for that, instead of upset that Oliver was so popular. He could've easily hung out with anyone he wanted to but for some reason he had chosen me. "I'm sorry."

"The apology isn't necessary," Oliver said putting his arm across my shoulders. "I'm sure you're getting sick of the jokes by now, but forget about them for now. Why don't we grab something to eat and then go find someplace to finish up our homework so we're not rushing through it tonight?"

I nodded. As soon as we hit the common room though I froze. I hadn't seen much of my brother Bill since I walked off on him the day before. However, I noticed something new about him straight off as soon as I saw him. He had an earring in his right ear lobe.

My words from the day before came back to me. I hadn't thought he'd take me seriously. I also knew he'd be expecting me to get back on a broomstick. Without a word, I hurried across the common room toward the exit trying to figure out who mom was going to kill first when we got home for Christmas holidays - Bill for getting the earring or me for being the cause of Bill having it.

"Now what's wrong?" Oliver asked. I hadn't realized he had followed me although I should've expected it.

I sighed and then explained to him the whole situation.

"They're right, Percy. Do you really want to get expelled over one stupid class?"

"No, but I also don't . . ."

My words trailed off as I ran into something and fell to the ground, a couple of books falling on top of me.

"I-I-I'm sorry," I stuttered immediately realizing that the something I had ran into was another student. A girl, with a heart-shaped face and vivid orange hair. I just stared at the hair. No one had that color of hair naturally. She was wearing the colors of Hufflepuff House.

"Don't worry about it," the girl said, kneeling and starting to gather her books. "As clumsy as I am, I'm use to picking up my books."

I picked up the two books that had landed on me, and handed them to her.

"Thanks," she said, taking them from me and standing up.

I got to my feet. "I really am sorry. I wasn't really paying attention to where I was going."

"Honestly, neither was I," she told me. "Well, I need to get going," she said, stepping around Oliver and myself. We watched her head down the hallway and somehow managed to trip over at suit of armor standing against the wall. I cringed at the racket it made. Seemingly unfazed by the incident, the girl kept on walking.

"Interesting color of hair she has," Oliver commented as we turned to continue on to the Great Hall. "And I think she's clumsier than you," he said with a grin.

"Not funny, Oliver," I told him.

"Lighten up, will you."

As I expected, Bill cornered me later that morning. Oliver and I were just starting to put our books away, so he could meet with Sheldon, Shelly, Kathy, Charles, Cindy and Carter before lunch. Their match against Ravenclaw was after lunch and Sheldon had wanted to get together to discuss strategy.

"I'll see in the Great Hall," Oliver told me, as he shouldered his bag, and headed into the castle to meet with the others. "Hi, Bill," I heard him say.

I looked up to see my older brother coming in my direction, broom in hand. I looked away quickly, and picking up my bag tried to casually walk in the opposite direction.

"Don't bother, kiddo," Bill told me. "I know you saw me already."

I sighed and stopped. There was no way I could outrun him. I turned to face him. "I didn't mean for you to actually go get your ear pierced. You do realize that Mom is going to kill you or me, when she sees it."

"So Charlie tells me," Bill said easily. I got the feeling he really didn't care about that prospect. "As for you, she won't have to know you had any part in it as long as you keep up your side of what you said and get back on a broomstick."

"Bill, I can't do it. You're wasting your time."

"You can do it. I think right now you're having so much trouble with it because your scared."

I looked down at the ground. I sure couldn't deny what Bill had just said. Just the idea of getting back on a broomstick scared me and not just because people would laugh at me either. What if I did figure it out? I had seen enough Quidditch matches to know what could happen if you fell from a broom from a good distance up.

"Come on," Bill said, putting his arm around my shoulders. "We'll leave your bag with Hagrid, and then I'm going to take you up. Maybe if you get a feel for what it's like, you won't be so scared."

What could I do? I let him lead me down the path to Hagrid's hut. Hagrid was outside chopping wood.

"Hey Percy! Hey Bill! Beautiful day for a Quidditch match isn't it. Looking forward to it myself. Going to be pulling for the first years. Always had a soft place for the underdogs," Hagrid said when he saw us.

"Should be an interesting match," Bill commented. "The first years actually didn't do too badly in practice yesterday and Carter actually caught the snitch. Ravenclaw might be in for a surprise."

"What about you, Percy?" Hagrid asked. "Looking forward to seeing the match this afternoon."

I shrugged. I saw Hagrid frown. Evidently that wasn't the reaction he was expecting. I couldn't help it. Right now the only thing on my mind was that I hope I didn't die falling of a broom.

"Mind if Percy leaves his bag here Hagrid," Bill said jumping in. "I'm going to take him up on the broom so he can get a feel for it. Figured it might help."

"Not a problem," Hagrid said, waving his enormous hand toward the hut. I opened the door, and put my bag on the floor inside the door and then rejoined Bill. "Have fun," Hagrid called out as Bill led me a little bit away from Hagrid's hut.

It wasn't long before I was sitting on the broom in front of Bill. "You ready?" he asked me.

"No."

"Relax, Percy. I won't let you fall," Bill assured me.

I took a deep breath, and nodded. I trusted my brother. I really did. It was gravity I wasn't so sure about.

"Here we go," Bill said, and I felt the broom start to move.

I gripped the broomstick tighter and then made the mistake of looking down. Already the ground looked far away. I closed my eyes. I felt Bill put his arm around my waist. "Relax, kiddo," he told me again.

I could feel the wind blowing through my hair. Slowly I opened my eyes and looked down. We were high above the castle grounds now. Everything could be seen below us. The green houses. The Quidditch pitch. As we approached the castle, I could see people out in the courtyard. They looked like little black specs from this height. We flew by the Astronomy Tower and then Bill circled around the castle and we headed back toward Hagrid's hut.

"Now this isn't so bad, is it?" Bill asked me.

"No, but don't let go of me."

"I already did, kiddo."

Sure enough, I looked down to see that Bill wasn't holding onto me anymore. I was staying on the broomstick by myself. By the time he touched down behind Hagrid's hut again, I felt completely at ease on the broomstick. Well at least when I wasn't the one trying to fly it.

"See how much fun flying can be," Bill told me, when we had both feet on the ground again. He held the broom out to me. "Now you try it, again."

I reached out and hesitantly took the broom from him. I still wasn't so sure about this. Then the sun glinted off of Bill's earring. I took a deep breath. At the very least, I had to try.

Trying to recall everything Madam Hooch had told me during class I mounted the broom. I kicked off the ground trying to get the broom to hover. It didn't happen. I tried a second time. Again nothing but at least I didn't fall in the attempt either. I took a deep breath and tried a third time. This time I found myself hovering a little bit off the ground. I didn't even chance a look at Bill. I didn't want to break my concentration.

I recalled what Madam Hooch had said about getting the broom to move forward. I leaned slightly forward, half expecting to find myself lying on the ground. Instead though the broom started inching forward. Granted, I was only going at a snail's pace but I was at least moving forward. It was something.

Twenty minutes later, I was able to get the broom to move at a moderate pace and I hadn't fallen from it. Maybe class tomorrow wouldn't be so bad after all.

"Now, I'm not going to have to drag you to class tomorrow morning, am I?" Bill asked as the two of us walked up to the castle for lunch.

"That won't be necessary," I told him. I still wasn't looking forward to it but at least the others wouldn't have as much ammunition.

"Good."

I looked up at my brother as we walked. I was on his right side and I could easily see the earring. I still couldn't believe he had actually gone through with it. Mom was not going to be happy about it. Even if he didn't tell her the truth about why he got it, I knew. It was my fault. He never would have even thought about doing something like that if I hadn't said what I had yesterday.

"I'm sorry," I told him, looking from him and down at the ground.

"Sorry!" Bill said, sounding surprise. "Sorry for what?" he asked. I didn't dare look up at him. I just kept walking. "Percy, what are you talking about?" he asked me, grabbing my arm and pulling me to a stop.

I looked up at him. "I'm sorry for getting you and Charlie in trouble. It's my fault the two of you got the howlers. Not to mention Mom's going to flip when she sees the earring and that's my fault . . ."

"Stop it, Percy. No one is blaming you," Bill told me. "As for the earring, that was my choice. You didn't twist my arm to get it."

"No but if I hadn't said that I wouldn't attempt to fly again unless you got your ear pierced you never would have even considered it."

"It was still my choice and to tell you the truth, I'm glad I did it. I like it!"

"Really?"

"Really," he told me. "So just relax. Neither Charlie nor I are mad at you. All we want is to see you happy."

I nodded and started toward the castle again.

**Charlie's POV:**

"Come on, Charlie!" Trey was calling from the doorway of our dormitory. Rodney was standing next to them.

"I'm almost done," I told them quickly, as I continued to write on the parchment. "I want to get this up before we leave." I was writing up the Gryffindor team roster. I had finally made my decisions. I had decided to put Trudy and Trent in as the Chasers and despite still not knowing why she had chosen to try out this year, had chosen Jennifer as the other beater. I just hoped that she hadn't decided to try out for the team as a chance to get back at me for skipping out on her on the first day.

"We're going to miss the start of the match," Rodney chimed in.

I finished writing Jordan Klinger down as a reserve for Chaser in case of an injury. "Okay, I'm ready," I told them quickly putting the quill down on the bedside table and capping the ink. Parchment in hand, I stood up and headed for the door. Trey, Rodney and I hurried down the steps.

The common room was empty by this time. Hurrying over to the bulletin board, I posted the team roster and then followed Trey and Trent out of the common room. The corridors were almost entirely empty. By this time most of the students were down at the Quidditch Pitch. The Ravenclaw versus the first year's match was due to begin in ten minutes.

Trey, Rodney and I hurried through the corridor to the main entrance. We were almost there when we came across a suit of arms knocked over. On the other side of it, A girl with orange hair sat against the wall, reading a book.

"Clumsy Nymphadora strikes again," Trey said with a laugh. I shot him a look.

Nymphadora Tonks was a Hufflepuff that was in our grade. She took a lot of teasing from the other kids because she was clumsy. However, she was also a very nice girl. It always amazed me how easily she seemed to be able to ignore the kids teasing her. On the outside, it didn't seem to phase her. I'm sure inside she felt differently though.

"Tonks, are you alright?" I asked stepping around the suit of arms and kneeling down in front of her. After being at Hogwarts for with her for five years, we had all learned how much she hated her first name.

"Charlie, we're going to miss the match," Trey said.

"Go on without me, if you're so worried about it," I told him sharply.

"Fine," he said. "You coming, Rodney?"

"Charlie?" Rodney asked. I looked over my shoulder to see him looking at me.

"Go ahead. I'll catch up," I told him. He nodded and then he and Trey headed toward the main entrance of the castle. I turned back to Nymphadora. "Are you okay?" I asked her again.

"Oh, I'm fine. You really should go with your friends."

"And what are you going to do? Just sit here?"

"Well, I was going to go down and watch the match," she told me, "but then I tripped over that suit of arms there. Some of our schoolmates got quite a laugh out of that. Given the nuisance I usually make out of myself down in the stands, I figured it would be better for everyone if I just sat here for awhile."

I smiled, thinking about our first year here. That was the only year I had actually watched all the Quidditch matches from the stands. Tonks seemed to have upset someone or something at every match by tripping over one thing or another.

"You're going to miss a good game though, Dora," I told her. "The first years were doing a great job yesterday in practice."

"I'm sure I'll hear about it this evening. Go ahead."

"Well if you're not going to go watch it, I'm not either," I told her, settling myself on the floor next to her.

She looked over at me. "Why are you being so nice?" she asked me.

I shrugged. Though I had never joined in on the teasing, I had never actually gone out of my way to be friendly toward her. Giving what Percy was going through this past week, I was starting to realize that I hadn't really been much better than those who did tease her.

"You look like you could use a friend," I replied. "So what do you say, going to come with me to the match?" I asked her, holding my hand at to her.

She sighed. "You're not going anywhere are you?" I shook my head. "Fine. I warn you though, you do this at your own risk," she told me, putting her hand into mine.

I helped her to her feet. She tucked the book under her other arm as we headed down to the Quidditch pitch. Halfway there she tripped over absolutely nothing. I kept her from falling and we continued on our way. "Must have been a rock or something there," I told her. She just smiled.

By the time, we reached the Quidditch pitch the match had already started. Our fellow students were cheering on those out on the pitch. I saw Rodney and Trey in the front row by the steps.

"Charlie! Come join us," Rodney said, waving to me.

I waved and then escorted Tonks up the steps. Thankfully, she managed not to trip and attract anymore attention than Rodney calling out to me already had.

"What did we miss?" I asked him, as we joined him and Trey. Tonks was in between the two of us.

"Nothing much. Chad has his friend Paris Franklin out there as seeker."

"Paris!" I exclaimed. Paris Franklin had a hard enough time keeping track of his own things. He was forever looking for something and it was normally sitting right out in the open. "How does Chad actually expect him to catch the Snitch? He might be fast on the broom, but he wouldn't know where his head was if it wasn't attached."

"Guess he got desperate," Rodney commented, as the Ravenclaw section started cheering loudly. Looking out on the pitch, I saw that one of the Winston twins had the Quaffle and was heading toward the first year's hoops. Molly and Mandy Winston were both chasers for the Ravenclaw team. They were both in my year and decent players. Probably the best two on the team.

The twin, ducked a bludger that Sheldon sent in her direction and took a shot at the hoop. I cheered with the others around me as Oliver caught the Quaffle. He tossed it to Charles who flew by and headed toward Ravenclaw's Keeper, Philip Murphy, Chad's younger brother. Phil Torrence, knocked a bludger in Charles direction. The bludger hit him in the arm, causing Charles to drop the Quaffle which was picked up by Chad. There was a collection of groans around me as Chad headed back toward the hoops Oliver was protecting. Evidently, a lot of the other students were rooting for the first years.

I looked up through the crowd. I saw Percy hanging with Emily and Ellen. I saw two Ravenclaw girls hanging out with them too. In fact, I noticed most of the Ravenclaw first years who weren't on the team, were hanging out with first years from other houses. Evidently they didn't feel safe with their house during the match. The other thing that became apparent was that a lot of the Slytherins were waving Ravenclaw pennants. It made sense. Slytherin was the other house that didn't let the first years even try out. If Ravenclaw lost, that practice could be threatened in their house too.

"Nice save, Oliver," I heard Rob yell out from somewhere behind me. I looked toward the pitch to see that once again Oliver had the Quaffle in his hands. He had blocked Chad's shot at the center hoop.

Shelly caught the Quaffle as he tossed it to her and once again the first years were trying to make an attack on the Ravenclaw's hoops. Cindy, Charles and Shelly passed the Quaffle between them, successfully dodging the bludgers. Philip knocked away Cindy's shot at the goal and Charles raced Chad for the Quaffle. Charles would have reached it first if a bludger hadn't grazed his broom almost unseating them. Chad scooped up the Quaffle and headed away the Ravenclaw's hoops.

Kathy was able to successfully send a bludger in Chad's direction. It hit him, almost unseating him from the broom. In the process of trying to stay on, Chad let go of the Quaffle. One of the Winston twins scooped up the free Quaffle and continued toward the goal. She took a shot at the right outside ring, which Oliver deflected. The other twin was in the right position to recover it. She caught it and immediately threw it toward the center hoop. Oliver just missed it and Ravenclaw scored the first points of the game. I groaned as did my friends around me.

Still, I was proud of Oliver and his teammates. They were outmatched out there but they were given a pretty good showing.

"Heard you were coaching the first years," Tonks commented beside me.

"I helped them out a little bit," I admitted, looking over at her. Despite the ridiculous orange hair, she was actually quite pretty. "It looks like they're going to give a fair showing today."

"You don't think they'll win?"

"I just don't see how they can. Ravenclaw has more experience and time together on the field. The only chance they have is Carter finding the snitch before Paris and before they get two far ahead of them."

"Nothing's impossible," Tonks said before looking back toward the field.


	12. Chapter 12

_**Percy's POV:**_

Oliver, Sheldon and the others sure weren't making it easy on the Ravenclaw team. However they were still behind, 210 to 60. The Ravenclaw Chasers were better at keeping control of the Quaffle. They had gotten off three times as many shots as Shelly, Charles and Cindy. Not to mention their beaters were more effective.

I took out the pocket watch that Bill had given me for my birthday. The match had been going on for two hours. Given the effectiveness of the two seekers so far, it could be going on for quite awhile longer. The Ravenclaw seeker looked completely lost out there. I don't think he had even spotted the snitch once. Carter had seemed to have spotted it a few times but the Snitch had so far eluded him.

Those around me cheered again. I looked up just in time to see Oliver pass the Quaffle off to Shelly. He must have blocked another shot.

"Isn't Oliver good," Penelope whispered to her friend Cinda, in a dreamy voice.

"If he was so good then Ravenclaw wouldn't have so many points," Cinda commented. "You just think he's cute."

"I do not!" Penelope exclaimed.

"Oliver and Penelope sitting in a tr . . ."

Cinda's words became muffled as Penelope put her hand over her mouth. I smiled at the girl's antics. As for Penelope having a crush on Oliver, I had to side with Cinda with that. Penelope was forever trying to start up a conversation with him, tried to side with him in everything. Now that she knew Oliver loved Quidditch she was suddenly a big fan. I had caught her reading - _Quidditch for Beginners _and_ Famous Quidditch Players Through the Years_. Oliver seemed oblivious to this though.

"What time is it anyway?" Emily asked beside me, bringing me out of my thoughts.

I glanced down at the watch once again. "Three-forty-five," I replied, as I put the watch back in the pocket of my robe.

"Is this game ever going to end?" Emily said, sounding a little bored. She hadn't exactly been enthusiastic about coming in the first place, but Ellen who was cheering her lungs out on the other side of Emily, had dragged her along. I had tagged along because Oliver was in the game and because there wasn't much else to do.

"I think the professors should just call the match," Collin said behind us. "I don't think anyone is going to catch the snitch."

"Yeah, they could've put Percy out there as a seeker and he would have been as effective as those two," Jason said. Those around us laughed.

I could feel my face growing hot, but I remained quiet. Tried to keep my face impassive. If I didn't show any emotion then maybe Jason would back off.

"If he did manage to catch the snitch it would only be because he tripped over it," Jason said again.

There was more laughter.

"More likely the snitch would find him," Sky said, chiming in.

I wanted to leave. To get away from their teasing. Instead, I kept watching the game. Tried to tune out the laughter around me. I felt Emily slip her arm through mine. Knowing she was there for me made things a little easier to take.

As the match went on, Jason and Sky didn't let up. They got in one jab after another on me. I just tried to pay attention to the game. To tune them out.

"Hey I think Carter's spotted the snitch again," a Hufflepuff called out. Neither team had managed to score any more points.

Sure enough, Carter seemed focused on a point in front of him. "Come on. Please, catch that thing," I said softly under my breath. If Carter could end the game, I could get away from Jason and Sky without looking like I was running away.

"And Carter Penn has caught the Snitch!" the announcer, a seventh year student from Hufflepuff, exclaimed. With the exception of most of the Ravenclaw and a good portion of the Slytherins, everyone was cheering. "The game ends in a tie. Definitely not the outcome Ravenclaw Captain Chad Murphy was looking for," he continued, almost gleefully.

Out on the field, Chad definitely did not look happy. While most of the other Ravenclaw players were showing good sportsmanship and shaking their opponents hands, Chad was having a shouting match with the Ravenclaw seeker.

"Let's go, Ellen," Emily said beside.

"Oh, okay," Ellen said, as she stopped cheering.

The three of us made our way slowly out of the stands. Personally, I was just grateful to be able to get away from Jason. Not to mention, I had some schoolwork that I needed to finish up for classes tomorrow.

"That was a good match wasn't it," Ellen commented as we headed toward the Castle among some other students who had already left the field. "I mean, yeah the first-years were definitely outmatched but they hung in there."

"Yeah, great match," Emily commented, showing none of her friend's enthusiasm.

"What did you think, Percy?" Ellen asked, obviously choosing to ignore her friend's apparent lack of enthusiasm.

"The first years definitely made a good showing. I don't think anyone even expected them to be able tie the game."

"I would have expected more enthusiasm from you," Ellen commented. "I mean both of your brothers are Quidditch players. I'd think you'd at least be into the game even if you don't play. Bill's a decent beater and Charlie . . ."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Charlie's an excellent seeker," I said bitterly. "You know, I lost something down at the pitch," I lied, coming to a stop. "I'm going to go see if I can find it. You two go on ahead without me."

I turned and headed back toward the pitch, weaving my way through the people going the other direction. "Was it something I said?" I heard Ellen ask as I walked away from them.

I kept walking, sick of being compared to Bill and Charlie. I hated having two older brothers who were so popular. I moved a little to my left to avoid walking into someone and immediately felt myself trip over something. As I fell, to the ground I heard Marcus' sneering voice. "You really need to watch where you're going, Weasley."

As we were on a slight incline, I rolled a little bit when I fell. I may have rolled further if someone hadn't ended up tripping over me. ~_ This just isn't my day, _~ I thought to myself, afraid to even look to see who had tripped over me. I knew it was one of the older students as I felt someone heavy laying across my legs momentarily before they got to their feet. ~_Whoever it is, will probably be mad._~ I hesitated getting up, thinking they might be nicer about it if they thought I was hurt.

As it turned out, I didn't need to worry about it. "Percy, are you okay?" Rob Wood asked, kneeling beside me. He'd been the one I rolled into.

"Klutzy Weasley strikes again," I heard someone remark as they walked by.

"I'm fine. Sorry about that," I said.

"You don't have any reason to apologize. Bill and I saw that Marcus kid trip you," Rob told me.

"Where is Bill?" I asked, as Rob helped me to my feet.

"Probably taking points away from Slytherin," Rob commented, nodding up ahead of us.

I turned to see Bill towering over Marcus, who actually looked a little scared for a change. I smiled, enjoying seeing Marcus uncomfortable for a change.

Rob and I started toward them. By the time we reached them, Marcus and Darin were heading back toward the castle.

"Are you two okay?" Bill asked looking at Rob and then at me.

"Fine," we both told him.

"I thought you were with Emily and Ellen?" Bill asked me. "What were you doing heading back toward the Quidditch pitch?"

I looked at the ground not sure what to say. Would Bill think my reason for leaving the two girls was childish? I had talked to Charlie about being tired of people comparing me to him and Bill but as far as I knew, Bill had no clue about that. I wasn't sure how to bring it up to him. I shrugged my shoulders.

Bill didn't say anything. The only voices I heard were those of the students walking past us. Without a word, I felt him put his arm around my shoulders and start leading me toward the castle. I didn't protest. At least I knew with Bill I was safe.

_**Charlie's POV:**_

"I've never been down here before," Tonks said, as she walked beside me. I was taking her to Hagrid's Hutt. "He's always kind of scared me."

Since Friday morning, I had been stopping by at least once a day to check on Hope. I had been there earlier today, and Hagrid had said the gryffin's bandage needed to be changed this evening and had asked me if I wanted to do it. Of course, I jumped at the chance which was why I was leading Tonks down there. Plus, I thought she might enjoy seeing the griffin.

"Hagrid's harmless," I told her. "So's Fluffy for that matter. Despite rumors that Hagrid's dog is an attack dog, in reality he'd probably run from a mouse."

She laughed. It was like music to my ears. Why hadn't I ever notice that before?

"So why do you go by your last name?" I asked her.

"Because I don't like my first name," she replied.

"But nymphs are supposed to be beautiful."

"Yeah sure, if you relate them to their mythological meaning. A lot of people don't though. They'd much rather make references to the other meaning of nymphs which is an immature insect."

"Okay, I see your point," I told her, trying not to laugh. I didn't want to hurt her feelings but I had never considered that definition of the word. It definitely wasn't as flattering as the meaning I had in mind. "Tanks just seems so impersonal though," I said, thoughtfully trying to think of another name I could use for her. "What's your middle name?"

"It's even worse," she replied.

"Okay," I said, letting the subject drop. I thought about her first name, Nymphadora. How could I shorten it to something that would sound okay and that she would like? "I got it," I finally exclaimed. "How about if I call you Dora?"

I looked over at her to see her reaction. Tonks looked thoughtful. I saw her lips move as if she was saying the nickname to herself to get a feel of it.

"I guess that would be okay," she said slowly, smiling at me.

~_Man, that smile is as pretty as she is_, ~ I thought to myself. I took my eyes off of it just in time to keep from walking into Hagrid's fence around his pumpkin patch.

Taking a deep breath, I tried to gracefully change my direction to go up to Hagrid's door. I heard Dora giggling beside me. Guess she had noticed my slight disorientation herself.

Hoping my face wasn't too red, I reached out and knocked on the door.

"Coming," came Hagrid's booming voice. "Ah, Charlie! Come on in!" he said, stepping aside to let me and Dora enter. "Who's your friend?"

"Hagrid, this is Dora Tonks. I thought she'd enjoy seeing Hope."

"Ah yeah, I noticed girls tend to have a soft spot for cute furry animals and Hope is just that. He's over this way," Hagrid said, heading over to the table.

We went to follow him, and Dora tripped over something. Bumping into Hagrid kept her from falling.

"Sorry," she said quickly, her face turning bright red, as she steadied herself.

"No, problem. Just watch your step," Hagrid said easily. "Here he is. Just waking up from a nap."

As Hagrid said, Hope was just getting to his feet, a sleepy look on his face. The griffin opened his mouth wide, as if yawning at us. Both Dora and I laughed.

"He's cute!" She exclaimed.

"Knew you'd have a soft spot for him," Hagrid told her, smiling. His face grew serious as he turned to me. "Do you remember what I told you on Friday about how to do the bandage?" I nodded, having listened very carefully when he did the original bandage. "Then I'll let you try it by yourself. If you're not sure of something just ask. The supplies are there," he said, waving a hand to indicate the stuff on the table next to Hope's crate.

Carefully, I picked the griffin up out of the crate and sat him down on the table. With Hagrid and Dora both watching, I started unwrapping the old bandage from Hope's wing.

_Oliver's POV:_

"That was fun!" Charles said as we all walked out of Madam Hooch's office, having returned the brooms to her office.

Madam Hooch had also told us that she was very impressed with the showing we put on. Coming from the Flying/Quidditch professor, those words made us feel like we accomplished something even though we hadn't won.

"I hope you guys aren't mad that I ended the game, when I did. I knew we weren't going to win, but I figured this way we ended the game on our terms," Carter commented.

We all told him he did the right thing. If my teammates felt the same way I did, I had been starting to wear down. Ravenclaw would have probably just got further ahead of us if the game had gone on. Besides, a tie was better than a straight out loss. At least we had showed that we were capable of playing the game.

When we reached the point we're we had to split up to get to our dorms we said good-byes. Kathy and I continued onto Gryffindor Tower together.

"I may actually try out for the Gryffindor team next year!" Kathy said, as we climbed the steps. As we walked, the staircase moved to another landing.

"So you had fun, huh!" I commented. It had taken a lot to convince Kathy to even join us. I was glad she had fun. I would've felt bad if she hadn't seeing as we had forced her into it.

"I had a blast!"

"Great!" I exclaimed. Despite the moving staircases we soon reached the Fat Lady's portrait. Giving her the password, we headed into the common room.

Those in the common room started clapping as we entered.

"Good show!"

"Nice way to stand up to those Ravenclaws!"

"Bravo!"

Those were just some of the shouts I could make out from my schoolmates. Kathy and I slowly made our way through the common room, trying to get to the stairs leading to our dormitories so we could change out of our Quidditch gear. It was great getting such a warm reception, but I also have to admit that the silence of the dorm was a welcome relief when I finally got there. I was so glad for the quiet, in fact, that Percy's comment made me jump.

"Congratulations on the tie. You did well out there."

"Thanks," I said, recovering quickly from my start. I walked over to my trunk and pulled out my clothes and regular robes. "You okay?" I asked looking over my shoulder at him. "I thought you were going to hang with Emily and Ellen."

"I did go to the match with them but then . . ."

Percy shrugged as he let his words trail off. I saw him avert his eyes to the canopy of his bed and got the feeling something had happened but I wasn't sure what. Neither Emily nor Ellen would have said something to upset him on purpose. Still, giving the first week Percy had it probably wouldn't take much to upset him.

I grabbed my regular clothes and headed for the bathroom. As I changed, I tried to decide if I should pursue the subject or not. I decided to let it go for now. Wait and see how Percy and my other two friends interacted at dinner. Let them try to work things out between themselves.

"Hey Percy," I called out as I entered the room again. "Can you help me with that new spell for Professor McGonagall's class after dinner tonight?" I knew Percy had already perfected it.

"Yeah, sure." he replied. Percy was still laying on his bed staring upwards.

"Speaking of dinner, you coming? I'm starving after that match."

"Yeah, might as well. If I try skipping, Bill will just drag me there anyway."

"He's just worried about you," I commented. Truth be told, ever since he had fainted, I had been keeping a closer eye on him myself. After watching him push food around his plate more than eating it at one meal, I could see why Bill was making such a big deal of it. "You need to relax some, Perce. You're taking things to seriously."

"Easy for you to say," he said sitting up and turning his back to me. "Everyone likes you. You're not making a fool out of yourself every chance you get and you don't have to listen to all the jokes."

I felt hurt at his words but tried to push that aside. Tried to see things from his point of view. I sat down beside him and put my arm across his shoulders.

"I'm sorry, Oliver. I know I haven't made trying to be my friend easy and now I'm taking my anger out on you," he told me before I even had a chance to say anything.

"It's okay," I told him. "I know things haven't been easy for you but know this. No matter what happens, I'm going to be by your side. You're not alone and I don't want to think about what this place would be like without my best friend."

Percy looked up in surprise. "Do you really mean that? Do you really think of me as your best friend?"

"Definitely," I told him. "Besides who else is going to get me through Potions?" I told him trying to lighten the mood. He smiled. "Come on, let's go get something to eat."


	13. Chapter 13

Percy's POV:

_Dear Mom,_

_Things are going okay this week. Transfiguration, Defense against the Dark Arts, Charms, and History of Magic are going well. Herbology and Astronomy are proving to be a little harder but I'm trying my best. Even Flying isn't quite as bad. Bill spent some time with me last weekend and at least I can stay on the broom now._

_The match between Ravenclaw and the first-years had some affect on things around here. Professor Flitwick has decided to change his house's policy and first-year Ravenclawss are now allowed to try out for the . Sheldon is happy about that even though the only current position open for the team is Seeker and a first year getting that position is very slim. Oliver Wood, a friend I've made here, played in the game. He did a good job. Oliver even tried out for the Gryffindor Quidditch team though he didn't make it. He really didn't expect to, as first years typically don't make the house teams, however he said he wanted to show he was serious about playing as a benefit for when he tries out next year._

_Sorry this is so short. I'll try to write more on the weekend._

_Love,_

_Percy_

I finished up the letter and looked it over. I hadn't written to my mother since the second day here. That was a week ago. I wasn't exactly sure how much Bill, Charlie or Professor McGonagall had told her but I was trying to keep things positive. I didn't want her to worry about me too much.

In reality, other than Flying class being not quite so bad, nothing had changed. I had gotten another detention on Tuesday from Professor Snape curtsey of Marcus. The Slytherin had tripped me once again on my way into the classroom. When I had fallen, I had bumped into Kat Sands, a Slytherin, who had bumped the table she usually sat at causing a classmate's cauldron and several bottles of ingredients to fall to the floor. Kat and the other two Slytherins at the table had not been happy and Snape had spent the first ten minutes of class lecturing me in front of the whole class on top of the detention.

Emily and Ellen hadn't brought up my sudden departure on Sunday so neither had I. I really didn't feel like explaining it to anyone. Ellen had been less friendly to me since then though. She hadn't done or said anything outright but she seemed to look in my direction while whispering, quite a bit. Then again maybe that was just me being paranoid.

Jason and Sky hadn't let up either. I tried to ignore them hoping they would lose interest. Instead, I was getting the feeling it was just making him even more mad at me, though for the life of me I couldn't figure out what I had done to him.

Satisfied that it would at least appease her for a little while, I sealed the letter and sat it beside my plate. Picking up my fork, I started eating my breakfast even though I didn't really feel hungry. Professor McGonagall was given us an examination today. She said it was more for practice than anything else but I was still nervous. I wanted to do well on the written part and not make a fool of myself on the practical part during which we had to demonstrate the two spells we had learned in front of everyone.

Beside me, Oliver was going over his notes. Others were practicing either turning a matchstick into a needle or an apple into a pin cushion. Professor McGonagall had warned us that if she stuck the needle into the pin cushion and juice leaked out, we would get a low grade. I had stayed up late studying last night and was currently just trying not to worry about it. I knew the material. It was performing in front of the class that had me worried.

I ate what I hoped would be enough to satisfy my brother and put the fork down. "I'll be right back," I told Oliver, who merely nodded, not looking up from his notes.

I picked up the letter and made my way down to my eldest brother. "Bill," I said tentatively, trying to get his attention.

"Yeah, Perce," he said, turning his attention away from the conversation he had been listening to.

"Could you send this letter to Mom for me?" I asked, holding it out to him.

He took it from me. "Sure. She'll be happy to hear from you."

"Haven't had much to write about."

"That will change, Percy. Just give it time."

I nodded. Wanting to believe his words but not sure I could.

"Perfect Percy," Jason said tauntingly as we headed toward Snape's classroom after lunch. He had been on my case ever since McGonagall had given me a perfect score on the practical part of the exam this morning. ~_If only she hadn't made such a big deal out of it_, ~ I thought.

I kept walking trying to ignore it though he kept going on about being a teacher's pet and anything else along that line he could think of. I was concentrating so much on ignoring Jason that I wasn't paying attention to the kids already in the classroom as we entered. As Oliver and I made our way to our spot in the front of the classroom, Marcus, who was already seated, stuck out his foot and tripped me.

As I landed on my right hand, I heard a snap and felt a pain go up my arm from my wrist. The only thing I could think of was that I was going to miss yet another potions class.

Biting my lip to keep from crying out, I rolled over onto my back, clutching my right wrist to me. It still hurt, and I didn't chance looking at it. I was pretty sure I had broken something. I couldn't think of anything else that sound could've been when I fell.

Marcus was looking down at me with a smirk. He clearly didn't care if I was hurt or not. Slipping my bag off my shoulder, I slowly sat up.

"Are you okay?" Oliver asked, kneeling beside me

"I think I broke my wrist," I told him though clenched teeth. My wrist was throbbing. I could feel tears welling up in my eyes and tried blinking them away. The last thing I wanted to do was cry in front of my classmates.

"Can you walk?" came Snape's voice. I looked up to see him standing behind Oliver, his face as stonelike as ever.

I nodded. "It's only my wrist that hurts," I told him, sure he was going to tell me to get up and stop holding up class.

"Then I suggest Mr. Wood walks with to the hospital wing so Madame Pomfrey can take a look at it," he replied, a hint of sympathy in his voice.

I nodded and let Oliver help me to my feet. ~_Looks like I'm spending another evening down here_, ~ I thought to myself, figuring Snape would once again make us make up the class work. Possibly, even give me another detention for disrupting the class. Snape had yet another surprise for me though.

"I'll excuse you both from the class work today though I do suggest you learn today's potion on your own time before the test, as it very well could be on it."

"Yes, Professor," Oliver said. I just nodded, shocked by his words. This was the first time that Snape had showed any sympathy toward anyone.

Oliver picked my bag up off the floor, and we headed toward the door of the room. I held my right hand against me. Despite the pain, what I heard as we exited the room made me smile.

"Mr. Flynn, you will report to my office at six p.m. tonight," Snape announced. Finally, Marcus was getting in trouble for giving me a hard time.

It wasn't much but it was something. Still, what I really wanted was just to go home. To get away from this place.

Bill's POV:

"I can't believe we got out of there without any homework," Rob commented as we walked out of Professor Spriggett's classroom that afternoon. It was our last class of the afternoon.

"Don't say that too loudly," Cameron Jones said from behind us. Cameron was in Ravenclaw but had the same goal as myself, after graduation he wanted to go work for Gringott's as a Curese Breaker. "Spriggett may change his mind."

"Good point," Rob said. "Let's get down the hall a little bit and then I'll celebrate. It's going to be nice not having homework for that class this weekend."

"You can say that again," I said, thinking of the long nights I had put in trying to do the work he had assigned so far this year. Last night was one of them thanks to Charlie's long Quidditch practice.

"It's going to be nice not having homework for that class this weekend," Rob said with a goofy grin on his face. I elbowed him in the side.

"I'll talk to you guys later," Cameron said as we reached the point where he needed to go a different direction in order to get to the Ravenclaw dormitory.

"Later, Cameron," Rob and I told him, as we started up the steps in the opposite direction. We hadn't gone far when we heard Oliver calling our names. Turning, I saw him hurrying toward us. I noticed that he had both his and Percy's bag.

"Where's Percy?" I asked him.

"That's why I was looking for you. He's down in the hospital wing. Marcus Flynn tripped him in potions and when he fell he broke his wrist. Madame Pomfrey says he's going to be fine though she wants to keep him overnight to make sure he gets some rest."

"I guess I should go down and see him," I said, not at all happy to hear that Marcus Flynn was giving Percy a hard time again. "Rob can you take my things up to the dorm?"

"Sure, Bill," Rob answered, holding his hand out for my book bag. I took it off my shoulder and handed it over to him.

"Thanks! I'll meet you in the Great Hall for dinner," I called over my shoulder, as I headed back down the stairs.

I forced myself to keep my pace to a walk as I headed toward the hospital wing. I wanted to run, but I was also aware of my responsibilities. As Head Boy, I was expected to set a good example. Running in the corridors would not be doing that.

As I entered the infirmary, I noticed three beds with curtains pulled around them. I wondered which one my brother was behind. I looked around for Madame Pomfrey or one of her assistants. No one was in sight, so I headed over to her office and knocked on the door.

Moments later, Madame Pomfrey was standing in front of me. "Bill Weasley!" she said when she saw me. "Professor McGonagall was just about to come talk to you and Charlie, but I assume you've already heard about Percy."

I nodded. Looking over her shoulder, I saw Professor McGonagall standing beside the desk. "Oliver Wood told me."

It was Madame Pomfrey's turn to nod. "I should've expected that," she said. "Your brother is going to be fine. Healing the broken bone in his wrist wasn't hard. The potion used to do so however has made him quite sleepy. I'm going to keep him here tonight but it's simply precautionary."

"And what about Marcus Flynn?" I asked looking past Madame Pomfrey to Professor McGonagall. "He's been giving Percy a hard time since the first day."

"I assure you Mr. Weasley that we are taking this incident seriously. Proper action will be taken as I've already assured your parents in the letter that I've sent them."

I nodded. There wasn't much I could say. As much as I wanted to go pound some sense into Flynn, I couldn't exactly do that. Not only would it be a bad example to set, but I also risked getting in trouble myself. My parents would be furious with me. For now, I'd let the professors handle it and hoped their punishment would deter Flynn from trying something again.

"Can I see Percy?" I asked, looking back to Madame Pomfrey.

"Of course. He's in the last bed on the left. Don't be surprised if he's sleeping though."

I nodded and turned to leave.

"I should be going, Poppy," I heard Professor McGonagall say as I walked away. "I need to have a talk . . ."

The rest of her sentence faded away as I made my way to the far end of the infirmary. Reaching the last bed on the left, I slipped through it. Percy was laying there. His right hand resting on a pillow. He wasn't asleep though. Instead, my brother was staring up at the ceiling.

"Hey kiddo," I said approaching the bed. Percy didn't look at me. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," he said, his voice flat.

"Now what kind of answer is that?" I asked him, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

"The only one anyone seems to want to hear," he replied, still looking at the ceiling. "Give it time, things will work out. Oh, I'm sure things aren't that bad. No one is taking me seriously. Nobody cares!"

"Percy that isn't true," I told him softly, reaching across him to rest a hand on his left forearm. "We do care about you."

"Then why can't I just go home. I don't fit in here any more than I did at home but at least at home there aren't as many people and no one is intentionally out to hurt me"

"Flynn will be punished for what he did . . ."

"It's not just Flynn giving me a hard time. Most of my classmates hate me too."

"Percy, I'm sure that's not true," I told him, instantly regretting the comment. It sounded exactly like the statements he had been complaining about.

"Just forget it," he muttered, turning on his left side.

I felt bad. Maybe Percy had a point. Were we really taking his feelings seriously in all this? He had said it wasn't only Flynn giving him a hard time. How much teasing was Percy putting up with?

"Percy . . ."

"Just leave me alone."

I wasn't about to do that. Like Dumbledore had taught me, I cleared my mind of my own thoughts and reached out mentally to Percy. It was the first time I had ever willfully tried to read someone else's thoughts and admittedly I felt a little uneasy about doing this. Still, I just wanted to help my brother.

At first, I thought I was getting somewhere. I could sense the fear and loneliness that Percy was feeling. The sensation didn't last long though as it suddenly disappeared, as if a door had been closed. Shaking my head, I looked down at Percy, who had his eyes closed.

I wasn't sure if he was actually sleeping or faking it, but I decided now was not the time to press the issue. Patting his shoulder, I got to my feet. I didn't plan on just letting this go. I'd come back later tonight to continue this. Maybe talking to Oliver would help.

Parting the curtain, I headed toward the exit. As I approached the door, Charlie was coming in.

"Is he okay?" Charlie asked, quickly. Apparently he had hurried here upon finding out the news himself.

"Broken wrist," I told him. "Madame Pomfrey says he'll be fine."

Charlie gave a sigh of relief. "I'd like to get my hands on that Flynn character," I heard him say under his breath.

"Don't go doing anything stupid," I told my brother, understanding how he felt. "Let the professors handle it. Besides, It wouldn't do to have the Quidditch Captain in detention at our next practice now, would it?"

"I said I'd like to, not that I was going to do anything," Charlie said. "I think I'll go see him."

I reached out and placed my hand on his arm. "Wait till later. I tried talking to him and I think I only managed to upset him more. It would probably be best to give him some time alone."

Charlie nodded. "I'll wait until after dinner," he conceded. Together we headed out of the infirmary and toward the Great Hall. Dinner would be starting in a few minutes. "No wonder Percy wants to go home. Flynn targeted him from the first day and he's feeling pressured to live up to us."

"I don't think Flynn is the only one giving him a hard time," I replied, thinking of my conversation with Percy. Something Charlie said had caught my attention though. "What did you mean by he's feeling pressured to live up to us?"

Charlie sighed. "I probably shouldn't have said that. Percy's been hearing a lot from the teacher's about our accomplishments which is making him feel as is he's got to live up to the standards that we set. I know how he feels. Lord knows I heard enough about you my first semester here."

"He told you that?"

"That night he got lost," he replied with a nod. "He didn't say to keep what he told me quiet but I kind of felt saying anything would've been breaching a confidence."

I nodded. Sure, I didn't like the fact that it had been kept from me but I had to admit that put in Charlie's position I probably would've done the same thing. Still, knowing that made me understand my little brother a little better. Charlie and I had made quite a few accomplishments over our years here. Feeling pressured to live up to that couldn't be easy on him. The trouble fitting in with his peers was just making things worse. Not to mention, knowing Percy, he probably felt pressured to make Mom and Dad happy.

I definitely needed to talk to Oliver. Figure out what else was going on with my little brother.


	14. Chapter 14

AN: I know I haven't updated this story in awhile so I don't know if any of my old readers are still around. Perhaps I'll find some new ones. Anyway, it seems this story is flowing again and I hope to finally give this story and ending. Happy reading everyone.

* * *

**_Bill's POV:_**

An hour later, both Charlie and I were heading back to the infirmary. I had talked to Oliver during dinner. He had told me about Jason and his friend giving Percy a hard time. Still, there wasn't much I could do. All they had done, so far, is tease him. As unfortunate as that was, my brother wasn't the first kid a Hogwarts to have to put up with teasing and he wouldn't be the last. Sure, I could tell McGonagall, and Jason may or may not get in trouble, but the chances were that would only make a bad situation worse. The best I could do was to be supportive of my little brother and keep a closer eye on him.

As we walked into the infirmary, I didn't see Madame Pomfrey or any of her assistants. Not dwelling on it, Charlie and I made our way back to where Percy was. Reaching out, I pulled the curtain back and was surprised to see my father sitting there beside him. It didn't look like Percy had moved from where he had been when I had left him earlier. On a tray next to the bed, sat a dinner tray that looked as if it hadn't been touched.

"Dad, what are you doing here?" I asked.

"Checking to see how Percy is for myself. Your mother is really worried. I was hoping I could go home and set her mind at ease. The fact that he is hurt again isn't going to sit well with her," Dad told us. Though I knew he wasn't really trying to make Charlie and me feel guilty, I did anyway. I was the oldest. I felt that I should've been looking out for Percy better. That if I had, then he wouldn't have gotten hurt. "Charlie, why don't you sit with your brother for a little while. I'd like to talk to Bill."

"Yes, sir," Charlie replied, as Dad stood up. Charlie took his place beside Percy. I looked at my brother and saw him nod to me. I knew he would try reaching Percy while we were gone, like we had originally planned.

Dad and I walked back through the part in the curtains. He led me away from the curtained area, waiting until we were out of ear shot before addressing me.

"Bill, you've been here with him. What's really going on?"

"Percy hasn't had the best start here," I admitted, telling him what had been going on at the school since our first day. "It seems like several of his classmates have picked him as a target for teasing and according to Charlie, Percy's feeling pressure to live up to both of us. I can tell he hasn't been happy here," I finished up.

"Maybe your mother is right. Maybe we should take him home," Dad said thoughtfully, glancing at the curtain hiding where my two brothers were. "We never expected anything out of him other than his best but if he's really unhappy here making him stay may only make things worse."

I thought about how close he had gotten to change the sunflower into a rabbit. Sure, he had gotten the color wrong, but none of my classmates had even gotten that close on our first attempt. Then he had easily blocked my attempt at trying to reading him earlier. Somehow, I didn't think pulling him out of Hogwarts was such a good idea.

"Maybe you should think about that a little longer. I really think Hogwarts is the best place for Percy to be. Dad, he tried one of the transfigurations that I was learning and almost got it right on his first attempt."

My father looked surprised. "McGonagall didn't mention anything to us."

"She doesn't know. Rob, Angela, Oliver and I are the only ones that seen it. We didn't really think anyone would believe us if we told anyone."

My Dad got a thoughtful expression on his face. I knew he was taking me seriously. What I didn't know was if it was enough for him to change his mind. I knew he would do what he felt was best for Percy. It was easy to see my little brother wasn't happy here. I couldn't really blame him with everything that had happened so far. Still, deep down I believed that he needed to be here.

Dad sighed. "Well, he has made friends and at least he's doing well in his classes. I'll give it another week and see how things are going. If he still insists that he wants to come home, I'm going to pull him from the school. I just hope nothing else happens."

"I'll keep a closer eye on him Dad," I promised my father.

"Thanks, Bill," Dad said, placing his hand on my shoulder. "I plan on talking with Professor McGonagall and see if we can't come up with some ideas on how to keep the teasing from happening. I don't want to hear about the two of you skipping classes but try to stay with Percy as much as possible."

"We will," I told him, my mind already running through ways to do just that.

"Speaking of your classes, I'm sure the two of you have homework to do. Why don't you get out of here and get to it? I'll stop by the common room before I leave."

"Okay, Dad," I told him.

I watched as Dad started walking to the back of the room. He took a couple steps and then turned back. "For the record Bill, I like the earring. However, I'm not so sure your mother is going to share that opinion."

"Are you going to tell her?"

"Oh, no. I'm leaving that up to you," he said and the turned again to head back to where Percy and Charlie were.

"That's what I was afraid you were going to say," I said quietly to myself as I walked the rest of the way to the door and stood next to it. I'd wait for Charlie so that the two of us could walk back together.

**_Charlie's POV:_**

Sitting in an arm chair I attempted to read the material I was suppose to have read for my Charms class tomorrow. I wasn't getting very far. I head read the same paragraph five times already. My mind wasn't on schoolwork at all. Instead, I kept looking toward the common room entrance looking for my father. What had he decided to do? Was Percy staying or was Dad pulling him from Hogwarts?

I had tried to get Percy to talk to me while Bill and Dad had been gone. I hadn't gotten anywhere. Percy had refused to talk at all though I had finally convinced him to eat some of his dinner.

With a sigh, I went back to the beginning of the paragraph ready to give it another shot. I hadn't gotten to far when I realized that the common room had suddenly gotten silent. Looking back over my shoulder, I saw that my father had entered the room. Closing the book, I stood up as Bill greeted him.

"Hi, Dad."

"Hi, Bill," Dad replied as he looked around the room. His gaze fell on me. "I'd like to talk to the two of you before I leave," he told us.

Bill looked around the common room. "My dorm room should be empty," Bill told him.

Dad nodded. Bill started toward the steps and Dad followed him. Dropping my Charms book onto the chair, I followed. Dad and Bill were both taking seats on Bill's bed as I walked into the room. I walked over to Rob's bed and sat down facing them. I looked expectantly at my father waiting for him to speak.

"Madame Pomfrey is keeping Percy in the hospital wing for the night and he's being excused from classes tomorrow. I am however not pulling him from Hogwarts at this time, though if things don't get better I'll have to rethink that."

"Why keep him out of classes tomorrow?" Bill asked, asking a question that I had wanted to ask myself.

"I think your brother can use the break from everything," Dad told him. "Missing one day of classes isn't going to hurt him academically. Hopefully, the break will give him a chance to collect himself. Bill, if things don't get better for Percy let me know. As much as I want him to stay I also don't want him to be unhappy."

"I will, Dad," Bill assured him.

"Professor McGonagall assures me that the professors are going to maintain more of a presence in the hallways between classes. Still, short of missing your own classes, I'd appreciate it if you could keep an eye on Percy as much as possible. I know you both have some free periods or your classes might be close enough to his to make staying with him possible."

"You got it, Dad."

"We'll do what we can," Bill assured him.

"Good. I know I can count on the two of you," Dad said, getting to his feet. He said good-bye and headed down the steps leaving Bill and me alone.

I looked over at my brother and found him looking back at me.

"Think the break will help any?" I asked him.

"I hope so," Bill said, not sounding too convinced. "I don't like seeing him so unhappy. Bet you wish that were you, huh. You could get some extra Quidditch practice in."

"I don't need to practice," I told him. "Now you on the other hand . . ."

Even if I hadn't purposely trailed off on the comment I wouldn't have gotten much further as Bill got up off the bed and tackled and started tickling me.

"I was just kidding," I told him through my laughter.

"You better be," he told me stopping. He stood up. "Don't you have homework to do?" he commented as he headed toward the door.

I got up off the bed and followed him. "Gee, and here I thought Dad had left."

"Someone has to keep you in line," Bill called back over his shoulder.

* * *

The next morning I told Rodney and Trey that I would meet them in the Great Hall for breakfast before I left the common room to head down to the hospital wing. Bill and I had decided that I would go to the hospital wing and make sure that Percy went to the Great Hall for breakfast this morning. Not only were we afraid he wouldn't go but we also knew that no one would give him a hard time if he was with one of us.

As I was heading down the staircase, I heard a familiar voice call out my name.

"Hey Charlie," Dora called, cheerfully. I stopped and turned to see her hurrying down the steps toward me.

"Good morning, Dora," I called back, waiting where I was, part of me hoping she wouldn't trip or anything.

Moments later she was standing safely on the steps next to me. "How's your brother doing? Rumor has it your father came and took him home last night."

"Well, my Dad was here last night but he didn't take Percy home with him. Actually, I'm heading down to the hospital wing for him. You're welcome to tag along if you want to," I told her.

"I was hoping you would ask," she replied, smiling up at me. "How is Hope doing?" she asked as we continued toward the hospital wing. Though she had asked for updates on the Griffin, Dora had yet to be back down to Hagrid's hut with me since the day of the Quidditch match.

"Hagrid says his wing is healing well. I'm actually heading down there after breakfast this morning. Can you come or do you have class?"

"I actually have Muggle Studies first period. I would like to see the Griffin again though."

"We'll have to see what we can arrange after classes one evening. I have Quidditch Practice this afternoon but what about tomorrow?"

"I've got tomorrow free. Actually, other than studying and the chess club I don't usually have plans for anything."

"You're on the chess club?" I commented, surprised by the admission. She didn't seem like the chess type to me.

Dora shrugged. "It's something to do that is relatively safe for me to do. Other than upsetting the board there isn't much I can mess up. Besides, I have fun doing it."

"Fun isn't exactly the word I would use to describe the game. Then again, Bill and everyone else I play against tend to beat me every time. I don't like losing so that is probably why I've never really taken to the game."

"Winning isn't everything."

I shrugged. It wasn't the first time I had heard those words and I knew it probably wouldn't be the last. Still, I was very competitive. I liked to win and I don't think anything could ever make me feel differently.

"Are you telling me that you wouldn't play Quidditch if you couldn't win every time?"

"Well," I told her, "It's not that I have to win every time but I would like to have the chance of winning."

"And if you didn't have that opportunity to win, would you stop playing?"

I took a moment to consider that. If we didn't win a match this year could I actually choose not to play next year. It didn't take me long to decide that I didn't want to give up the game. Next year would be my last year at Hogwarts. I definitely planned on coming back as Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team next year no matter how we did this year.

"Okay, I see your point," I told her. "That doesn't mean I like the game of chess anymore though."

Dora laughed. By this time we were approaching the hospital wing.

"Do me a favor," I told her as we approached the door to the main room. As I glanced over at her, I saw Dora nod. "Don't say anything that might be viewed as your comparing Percy to me or Bill. It's a sensitive subject right now," I told her, not really having the time to explain everything right now.

"Got it," she told me, as I opened the door and held it open for her.

As we walked inside, I looked to the back of the room where Percy had been the night before. The curtain around that bed had been pulled back. My brother was sitting on the bed listening to Professor McGonagall, who was standing nearby. Dora and I headed toward the two of them.

"And you can get your homework assignments off of Mr. Wood. You will be responsible for having them done on time," Professor McGonagall was telling him as we got into earshot.

"Yes, Professor," Percy replied.

"Very well," Professor McGonagall said, as she glanced in my direction. "Good Morning Mr. Weasley, Miss Tonks."

"Good morning, Professor," we both replied.

"I'll let the three of you get to breakfast. Percy, you know where to find me if you need anything."

"Yes, ma'am."

"You ready to get out of this place?" I asked my brother as Professor McGonagall left the room. Percy just shrugged. "Percy this is my friend Dora."

"We've met before," he replied quietly.

"Really?"

"Yeah, you could say we ran into each other," Dora said, an amused smile on her face. I decided not to ask for details.

"Well, I don't know about the two of you but I'm hungry," I said. "So why don't we get out of here and head for the Great Hall before our classmates eat all the food."

"Like that's going to happen," Percy muttered under his breath even as he got to his feet.

I had a sudden urge to want to tell my little brother to stop feeling sorry for himself. I resisted telling him that though as I knew it wasn't going to help anything. If anything, me getting angry at him would only make this whole situation worse.

Instead, I put an arm around his shoulders and lead him toward the door. Dora fell into step beside us. We walked in silence for a while. Percy clearly wasn't in the mood to make small talk. Deciding not to press him right now, I started a conversation with Dora. It wasn't long before we found ourselves talking about our Defense Against the Dark Arts class, which we had together.

Reaching the Great Hall, we split up. Dora headed toward the Ravenclaw table while Percy and I headed for the Gryffindor table. As Percy joined Oliver and Emily toward one end of the table, I looked for Rodney and Trey. Finding them, I made my way down the row of chairs and sat in an empty one next to Rodney. Both of them had our Charms book open.

"Either of you figure out that charm Flitwick expected us to learn?" I asked. A horseshoe was sitting in the middle of the table.

"Well, seeing as 'the object you are trying to place the good luck charm on should hover for five seconds after the charm has been successfully cast', I would say no," Trey said, reading the last step of the charm from the book.

"The only way that horseshoe is moving is if it got put onto a horse's foot," Rodney commented, shutting his own book and picking up the muffin off his plate. "I'm ready to admit defeat. The horseshoe wins," he said, before taking a bite of the muffin.

"I wonder if anyone else in the class has figured out the charm," Trey said, returning his attention to his own breakfast.

"We better hope not. Maybe if nobody knows how to cast the charm he'll give us an extension," I commented, filling my plate.

I glanced down the table at Fiona and Gail, two of our classmates that were still taking Charms. A horseshoe was sitting on the table in front of them too. I was happy to see that it wasn't moving either. As Fiona was at the top of our Charms class, it gave me hope. I really didn't think that Flitwick would fail the whole class on this assignment.

"Well, at least you have a free period before class," Trey commented. "You can practice some more. Although, maybe Snape will have us concoct a luck potion during Potions."

"What are we going to do with a luck potion? Pour it on the horseshoe and hope that works."

"I was thinking more along the lines that if we drink it we'll get lucky and the charm will work right when Flitwick asks us to perform it," Trey told Rodney.

"We'd have used up our luck just making the potion," Rodney told him.

Trey picked up a corn muffin and tossed it across the table. Rodney ducked out of the way and the muffin flew past us.

"Hey! What was that for?" Trixie Ritter asked.

I turned around to see her glaring at us from her place at the Slytherin table. The corn muffin lay on the floor next to the back leg of her chair. I had a feeling it had hit her before dropping there.

"Sorry, Trixie," Trey told her. "I was aiming for Rodney."

"Well, your aim is a little off," Trixie told him.

"Yeah, well that's probably why I don't get involved in sports," Trey told her lightly. I could see him blushing slightly. I knew Trey had a crush on Trixie even though he had never said anything to her. "Really, Trixie. I'm sorry."

"Yeah, well see that it doesn't happen again," she replied, before turning around.

"Now, no more throwing food Trey or I'm going to have to take house points away," I told him, trying hard to keep a straight face.

"Yes, sir," Trey replied, giving me a mock salute.

After breakfast, I headed out of the castle and down to Hagrid's hut. I had brought Percy with me. Though he tried to hide it, I could tell he enjoyed spending time with the baby Griffin. Hope may very well be the one thing he was enjoying here at Hogwarts.

"Ah, Charlie. Good morning!" Hagrid said loudly as he answered my knock on the door.

"Good morning, Hagrid," I replied as he stepped aside to give us room to enter.

"Morning, Percy," Hagrid greeted my brother. Percy quietly returned the greeting. "Shouldn't you be in class, though?" he asked as he shut the door.

"He's been excused from classes today," I replied for my brother. "How's Hope doing?" I asked as I walked across the hut to the baby Griffin's box. I saw her head peaking out over the top of the box as I approached.

"She's just waking up," Hagrid commented as he closed the door to the hut. "She's been more active lately. I think she's healing well. You're doing a good job Charlie."

"Thanks, Hagrid," I said, pleased at the compliment. I headed over to Hope's box.

Percy had already knelt down in front of the Griffn's box, so I knelt down beside him. My brother was scratching Hope's back, and she was clearly enjoying it as she made an almost cooing sound. For the first time in awhile, I saw a genuine smile on my little brother's face. I felt a smile come to my own face, happy that Percy was finding pleasure in something.

"Want to feed her?" I asked him, as that was what I had come down to the hut to do.

Percy glanced over at me and nodded.

Hope was still young enough that she should have been feeding on her mother's milk. The fact that she had been separated from her mother meant that she needed to find another source of milk. Hagrid had gotten goat and dragon milk and we were mixing the two together for Hope, and feeding her with a bottle.

"I'll get it ready," I told him, getting to my feet.


	15. Chapter 15

**_Percy's POV:_**

The Gryffindor Common room was quiet just as it should've been at his time of day. My schoolmates were all in classes. Having been excused from classes for the day, had given me the run of Gryffindor Tower more or less to myself all day. There had been a few of the older students coming in and out when they had free periods but thankfully they tended to leave me alone. The only one, other than my brothers, who had even said anything had been Rob and I think that was probably because Bill had asked him to check on me.

I looked up at the clock. Last period was just starting. The peace and quiet I had been enjoying most of the day would soon come to an end. I looked back down at the novel I had been reading. I wanted to finish the current chapter I was in and then I planned on going back to doing the school work from my morning classes that Oliver had dropped off earlier.

I had read another sentence when I heard the door to the common room open. Looking up from the book, I saw Oliver and Sheldon entering the common room. Curious as to what they were up to, I placed my bookmark in the book and shut it.

"Don't you two have class?"

"Yeah, but Sheldon wasn't feeling well and Shelly told Professor Crenton that I walked him down to the hospital wing - Defense Against the Dark Arts successfully ditched," Oliver said as he and Sheldon made their way over to where I was sitting.

"And if Professor Crenton asks Madame Pomfrey how Sheldon is?" I asked, wondering if they could actually pull off their lame excuse.

"We'll worry about that if it comes up," Sheldon said with a shrug.

I got the impression that neither one of them was to worried about whether or not they would get caught skipping class.

"What are you two up to anyway?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me. Part of me wasn't sure I wanted to know.

"We're heading out to the Forbidden Forest . . ." Oliver started to say.

"We're not supposed to be in the forbidden forest. Dumbledore said it was dangerous," I said, cutting him off.

"Just how dangerous could it be?" Sheldon countered. He looked over at Oliver. "I told you we shouldn't bother including him. He's too much of a chicken to go along with it. Now we've got to worry about him telling McGonagall or someone what we're up to."

"I am not a chicken," I said tossing the book aside and getting to my feet.

"Then you'll come?" Oliver asked, not paying attention to my outburst.

"Sure," I said with a shrug of my shoulders, trying to sound more confident than I felt.

All I could really think about was that we were going to get caught. It wasn't so much the idea of going to the Forbidden Forest that scared me as it was the idea that someone would catch us doing so. I didn't want to get caught. Not only would we be in trouble for breaking school rules but I would end up with a lecture from Bill, followed by a scolding from my parents, Mom in particular.

I'd survive the lectures though. The thing that bothered me the most, was the fear of letting my parents down. All I wanted to do was to make them happy. Getting in trouble in school wasn't going to do that.

Still, if I didn't go then Sheldon would be calling me a chicken for the foreseeable future. I had enough schoolmates picking on me. I didn't need to add to the list. Not to mention, what if they got caught? Sheldon would assume I had turned them in even if I hadn't. Neither option worked out very well for me. The best thing I could do was go along and hope that we didn't get caught.

"Let's get going then before one of the older kids with a free period comes in here," Oliver said.

Leaving the book where it lay, I followed Oliver and Sheldon out of the Gryffindor common room. The hallways of the castle were empty. Our footsteps seemed to echo throughout the castle. I thought for sure someone would come along and ask us what we were doing wandering the corridors when we should've been in class.

Oliver led us past the main staircase and down a hallway. The path took us right past McGonagall's room but as she was teaching class there was no danger of running into her at this hour. We passed a couple of closed door that I wasn't sure what was behind them. At the end of the hallway, Oliver opened another door. The door squeaked on its hinges causing me to jump. Both my schoolmates were unfazed by the sound which made me glad I was behind them. Sheldon would've probably gotten in a crack about me being scared if he had noticed.

This door led to a narrow set of stairs. Without a pause, Oliver started down the spiral staircase with Sheldon right behind him. With a glance back down the hallway I followed too, pulling the door shut behind me. The stair case was narrow and dimly lit and noticeably seldom used. Here and there cobwebs had been allowed to gather on the sconces.

As I followed my two schoolmates down the steps a few things went through my mind. Like when the last time someone had used this staircase was and for what reason had they used it. Had they been sneaking to some place they weren't suppose to be like we were? How many people even knew this stairwell existed? Sure it wasn't exactly hidden but it also hadn't been mentioned on our tour of the castle. In fact, I had yet to see anyone come any further down this hall than McGonagall's room. Obviously though someone had either told Oliver about the stairwell or he had gone exploring on his own and discovered it.

At the bottom of the steps, a hallway stretched out in front of us. It went straight for awhile before making a couple of turns. Finally we came to a door. Oliver opened the door and stuck his head out into the hallway. He glanced quickly in both directions before stepping out into the corridor all the way. Sheldon and I followed him.

I was happy to get out of the narrow stairwell and into a better lit corridor. Glancing around though, I had no clue where in the castle we were. As Oliver headed off down the hallway, I followed.

~_I sure hope he knows where he is going_, ~ I thought to myself as I walked behind him.

Eventually, windows appeared on the left side of the corridor. Glancing out them, I was able to figure out that we were on the south side of the castle toward the back of the castle. It wasn't long before we came to one of the seldom used exits of the castle. Without a bit of hesitation, Oliver yanked open the door and we headed outside.

The weather had started to cool some, but it was still comfortable out here with just our robes. A gentle wind blew and some birds could be heard singing in the distance. All and all, it was a pleasant day to be outside.

"Now comes the hard part. We need to get across the school grounds without anyone noticing," Oliver said turning around to face Sheldon and myself as the door to the castle door closed behind me.

"Too bad we didn't know an invisibility spell," Sheldon commented.

"Yeah, well we'll have to make due without one," Oliver told him even as he scanned the grounds. "Luckily there doesn't seem to be too many people outside and hopefully those inside the castle are busy with work. I think the best thing to do is to head straight out toward the lake for now for now," he told us, pointing in the direction he was indicating. "Hopefully, no one will take notice of us. When we reach the cliffs, we can change direction and head toward the forest. That should also put us far enough away from Hagrid's cabin that we can get past it. What do you guys think?"

"Sounds good to me," Sheldon replied, even as they both looked over at me.

"Hey, I'm just along for the ride," I told them.

"Then let's go," Oliver said.

The three of us hurried across the grounds. When the cliffs were in sight we changed our direction to the east. Off in the distance I could see the forest.

~_If we get caught . . . _~ I thought, as I hurried along beside Oliver and Sheldon.

Up ahead I noticed a very old willow tree. From stories Bill had told me, I was sure that was the Whomping Willow. I also knew I didn't want to get anywhere near it and our current path would take us right underneath its branches.

"We need to go around that tree up ahead," I told my to comrades.

"You're afraid of a tree?" Sheldon asked incredulously. I got the distinct feeling that he was trying really hard not to laugh at me and probably would have if it was just the two of us.

"That isn't just any tree, that's the Whomping Willow," I told him. Sheldon just gave me a blank stare. I chanced a glance over at Oliver who looked just as lost. I sighed. "Bill told me about it. The tree supposedly has a mind of its own and it isn't exactly friendly. It swings its branches at anything that gets within in range."

Sheldon snorted, obviously not believing me.

"You take your chances if you want, but I'm not going anywhere near that tree," I told him.

"It's not like going around it is going to take a lot of time," Oliver said.

I couldn't tell if Oliver believed me or if he was just trying to keep the peace. At any rate, Sheldon conceded and the three of us started on our trek again. We passed well to the left of the Whomping Willow. As we passed by, a sparrow got too close to the tree and a branch deftly knocked it out of the sky.

Sheldon looked from the tree over to me and then down at the sparrow now laying motionless on the ground. He didn't say anything and I refrained from saying I told you so. We continued our trek toward the forest. Despite the stories I had heard about the Forbidden Forest, it looked just like any other forest to me. I couldn't tell what was so foreboding about it.

The three of us kept walking. It wasn't long before the trees completely surrounded us. The path we were walking on was littered with broken sticks and fallen leaves which crunched under our shoes. It only added to the eerie feeling the shadows of the forest around us were creating. My thought about it not being foreboding seemed miles away. I wasn't sure if it was my imagination or not but things seemed to be watching us from the shadows.

If Oliver or Sheldon felt the same way, they were hiding it well. The two of them were ahead of me and strolling along as if they were out on the open grounds of Hogwarts. Not wanting to draw attention to myself, I kept my mouth shout and followed them silently.

"I don't see what the big deal about this place is," Sheldon said a while later. "This place seems like any other forest." He sounded as if he was trying to convince himself of what he was saying.

"Yeah, I think I've seen enough," Oliver commented. "Are the two of you ready to head back?"

"If you want," Sheldon replied.

I was about to reply myself, when we heard a rustling in the trees to our left. There was something else in the woods with us and from the sound of it that something was fairly big. The sound was getting closer to us.

I glanced at my two schoolmates. I made eye contact with the both of them and the fear I was feeling was mirrored in their faces. As much as I wanted to run out of the forest, I just couldn't seem to get my feet to move. Instead, I found myself watching the area that the sound was coming from.

It wasn't long before we found out what was making the racket. Breaking some branches in the process, a huge forest troll made its way into the clearing we were standing in. The troll came to a stop as his eyes landed on us. We might have not been the reason he was heading this direction but it seemed as if we had caught his attention.

"Maybe if we just walk slowly backwards, we can get away from it before he decides we'd make a good dinner," Oliver suggested, even as I notice him take a step backwards out of the corner of my eye.

"I think you're thinking of bears," Sheldon replied, though he was following Oliver's example.

Not taking our eyes off of the troll, all three of us slowly inched our way backwards. The troll never took his eyes off of us. I almost got the feeling he was deciding if we were worth any effort on his part.

~_Please decide we wouldn't even make a decent snack, _~ I thought.

The troll tilted his head to the side. To my left, Sheldon stepped on a branch. The snapping sound seemed to echo through the forest. With a grunt, the troll started lumbering in our direction.

Without thinking about it, I pulled my wand out of my pocket. "Stupefy," I called out, hoping the spell would work. I had read about it in Bill's Defensive Against the Dark Arts book over the summer but had never attempted it. Given the situation we were in, I couldn't see how attempting it could hurt.

The lumbering troll suddenly came to a halt. His feet were frozen in place but he could still move the upper part of his body. Confused, the troll looked down at his feet, as if he was wondering what was going on. He gave an angry sounding grunt and then made a grab for me. I felt myself being tugged backwards, as the troll's giant hand passed in front of me. The creature's howl echoed through the forest.

"That's not exactly how the spell was supposed to work."

"Who cares?" Sheldon said beside me, making me realize that I had said the comment out loud. "Let's just get out of here while he's stuck there."

Not about to argue with that suggestion, Oliver and I turned and started following Sheldon as he hurried in the direction we had just came from. Even as we jogged down the dirt path, I kept listening for the sound of the troll following us. Given that the stunning spell had only partially stunned the troll, there was no telling how long it would actually last. With any luck, we would be out of the forest before it did.

Our only goal was to get out of the forest and back to the relative safety of the school grounds. We didn't even consider where the path we were on would bring us out. If we had, we probably would have reconsidered following it all the way out of the woods as the path ended right behind Hagrid's hut.

Sheldon and Oliver collapsed next to the pumpkin patch, panting. Out of breath myself, I collapsed down next to them even as I glanced toward Hagrid's place. Smoke rose slowly out of the chimney, which told me that the groundskeeper was mostly likely inside.

~_If he catches us out here, will he realize that we came from the forest? Will he turn us in? _~

I hesitated to voice my thoughts out loud, remembering Sheldon's earlier comments. I didn't want to lose any points I had gained with him by going along with the plan to go to the forest.

"Perhaps we should head back to the castle before . . ."

Oliver let his voice trail off. I looked to him, about to ask him why, and noticed he was looking toward the hut. Following gaze, I realized what had caused him to stop talking. Standing at the side of the hut was not only the giant groundskeeper but my brother Charlie too. Standing behind the two of them, I saw Tonks.

"Well, here's the commotion we heard, Charlie," Hagrid commented, with a glance at my brother. His gaze drifted back to us. "What are the three of you doing out here?"

My mind was blank. What excuse could we possibly come up with?

"We were playing a game of tag," Oliver replied, without hesitation. His voice was smooth and even. "All of us were tired so we decided to take a break."

"Well, this isn't exactly the ideal place to be. Creatures of the forest don't normally wander out but there are no guarantees. The three of you should probably head back up to the castle to continue your game."

"Yes, sir," Sheldon replied. "We really didn't realize how far away from the castle we had gotten," he continued, going along with Oliver's story.

"We should probably be headed back ourselves, Hagrid," Charlie commented. "I'll be down tomorrow to check on Hope. Come on you three, all of us can walk up together."

"See ya tomorrow Charlie," Hagrid called out as we all started toward the castle.

As we followed Charlie and Tonks, Oliver, Sheldon and I looked around at each other. Something told me that Charlie hadn't bought our excuse. Was he going to turn us in? I wasn't sure.

"I'm going to do some research for a class project before dinner, Charlie," Tonks said as we reached the courtyard. "Thank you for taking me down to meet Hope."

"No problem," Charlie told her with a smile. I wasn't an expert by any means, but from the looks of it, I had a feeling my brother was a little sweet on Tonks.

"I'll catch the two of you later," Sheldon said, as he headed off toward the Ravenclaw Tower.

Oliver and I started toward the castle without a word. I didn't have to look behind me to know that Charlie was following us. I tried to convince myself that it was just coincidence. After all, he was a Gryffindor. It was possible that he was simply headed to the Gryffindor Common room for his own reason. Charlie crushed that little bit of hope though as we walked past some empty classrooms though.

"I want to have a talk with the two of you," he said from behind us, pointing to Professor Binns' empty classroom.

With a sigh, the two of us headed through the door. I was looking forward to the upcoming lecture about as much as the normal lectures that took place in this room. Chances were that Charlie would be a bit more animated than our ghostly professor but I had a feeling that I'd enjoy the content about the same.

I exchanged a look with Oliver as we stepped inside. His face gave him away. My friend knew what was coming. It must've come with having an older brother. The two of us headed for the closest desks and sank down in the chairs. Neither of us bothered looking toward Charlie, even as we heard him close the classroom door.

"Tag?" Charlie said. His voice was laced with disbelief and a bit of amusement. "Now, that excuse might get you past Hagrid but it isn't going to hold up against anyone else here. McGonagall would have you in detention in a heart beat. So what were you really up to?"

Oliver and I just exchanged looks. Charlie obviously knew we hadn't been truthful. Still, telling him exactly what we were up to was a whole different story.

"Let me guess," my brother said, when neither of us responded. "The three of you decided to check out the forest. Did that myself, my first year. Rodney and I took a dare from one of the Slytherins. I still say the only reason we got caught was that Jennifer had overheard us and told Bill, who even in his third year had his sights set on being Head Boy. We never did make it to the forest that year."

"Are you turning us in?" I asked.

"No, though I probably should," Charlie replied. "Do you two realize how dangerous your little field trip was? One of you could have gotten seriously hurt."

"Not with Percy with us we wouldn't have been," Oliver said, clapping a hand down on my shoulder.

Charlie looked from me to Oliver and then back to me. I could see the curiosity on his face and I also knew he wouldn't let the comment go without an explanation.

"I just got lucky."

"Yeah, right. That troll wanted to have us as a snack and probably would have if Percy hadn't stunned him."

"I only half stunned him. The spell didn't work right."

"Where did you learn a stunning spell?" Charlie asked.

"I read it in one of Bill's old Defense against the Dark Arts book over the summer," I told him. "It was my first time attempting it but I figured I didn't have anything to lose."

Charlie was just staring at me. I couldn't tell what he was thinking.

"What?" I asked, when I couldn't take the staring any longer.

"That isn't exactly an easy spell to learn," Charlie replied. "Took me a week of trying, to even manage to get the rabbit we were practicing on to move in slow motion."

"It was probably just beginner's luck," I said quickly, trying to get some attention off of me.

Changing the sunflower into a rabbit had seemed like an easy feat after figuring out how to change the matchstick into a needle. Conjuring the wind to blow out the torches in the corridor was just the idea of saying the right words to the spell. The hardest part had been saying them soft enough that nobody would overhear me. All the course work so far had seemed fairly simple to me. Everyone around me though seemed to think otherwise. That in itself was starting to scare me.

It was an ability that seemed to be setting me apart from my classmates when all I wanted to do was fit in. To be like everyone else around me. Given my start here at Hogwarts' so far, that was hard enough. This natural ability I seemed to possess for magic spells was only going to make it harder. I almost wanted to start doing worse in my classes. Then maybe my classmates would start to accept me. The only thing keeping me from doing that was the fact that my parents' would be disappointed in me.

"Maybe," Charlie said, thoughtfully. He grew serious though as he started talking again. "I don't want either one of you going anywhere near the Forbidden Forest again. If I catch you even attempting it, I'll turn you in. Am I understood?"

"Yes," Oliver and I both replied.

"Can we go know?" Oliver asked.

"Go ahead," Charlie said nodding toward the door.

Oliver and I stood and headed to the door. We were about to step out in the corridor when Charlie spoke up again.

"If you plan any more adventures, I'd suggest better planning and better alibis."

We didn't say a word as we escaped the classroom. In fact, neither one of us spoke up until we were halfway up the main stair case.

"Wish my brother was that cool," Oliver commented. "Rob probably would have turned us into McGonagall if he had caught us."

"Yeah, well Bill probably would have escorted us directly to her office," I told him.


	16. Chapter 16

AN: For my readers who are curious - this story does now have an ending though I still got to go over chapters again before posting. Hope you enjoy the rest of the story!

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**Bill's POV:**

"I think we'll call it a day a little bit early this morning," Dumbledore told us, as he finished his lecture on the last chapter we had read. "Go ahead and read chapter three and I'll start going over it next Friday. I'll see you then."

Around me, my Legilmency classmates started putting their things away quickly, eager to enjoy the extra fifteen minutes we were getting. I followed suit but at a slower pace. Ever since Tuesday evening, I had been wanting to talk to Professor Dumbledore about my experience with Percy down in the hospital wing. The opportunity to do so had yet to present itself. Class letting out early now gave me that chance.

"Is there something you wanted to talk about, Mr. Weasley?" I heard the headmaster ask as I pulled the string on my bag closing it.

Looking up, I saw that it was now just the two of us in the room. I looked toward Dumbledore who was still sitting behind his desk.

"Actually, Headmaster there was," I said, suddenly feeling uneasy. I wasn't sure why. I had never felt nervous about talking to any of the teachers here before, not even the headmaster and it wasn't as if I was in trouble. I just wanted to see if he could give me an explanation for what had happened.

Professor Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, fingers pressed together, elbows resting on the desk in front of him. He looked as if he had the entire day for whatever it was that I wanted to discuss despite being in charge of the entire school.

"I wanted to talk to you about something that happened to me earlier this week," I continued. The headmaster nodded slightly, encouraging me to go on. "When Percy was down in the hospital wing, I couldn't get him to talk to me. I thought maybe if I could find out how he was feeling that it would give me some insight on how to help him, so I tried to read his mind. I did everything you taught us to, and I started to sense something but then it just stopped. Like a door was suddenly closed."

"Perhaps you were just too nervous about what you were doing. After all, as I have said plenty of times, invading someone's privacy by reading their mind is something that should only be done when entirely necessary. Perhaps your own feelings about what you were doing were interfering."

"Maybe," I said slowly. "I didn't exactly feel comfortable doing it but I just wanted to help him."

"I'm sure you did," Dumbledore said thoughtfully. "And I'm glad to hear you did have second thoughts about what you were doing."

"So do you think it was just my uneasiness with trying to read Percy's thoughts that broke off the contact?"

"It's a distinct possibility, though not the only explanation. Just as there are those who have a natural talent for Legilmency there are also those who have a natural talent for Occlumency."

"And you think Percy might be one of those people?"

Dumbledore's face remained neutral as he paused before answering. "I'm just stating possibilities here. I'd need to spend some time with him before I could tell, though given the reports I've gotten from some of his teachers, it wouldn't surprise me. It seems he's finding many of his classes very easy. Even Professor Snape has had words of praise for him which doesn't happen too often and I'd appreciate if you didn't mention I told you that," he added with a wink.

"I doubt anyone would believe me if I did," I replied.

"Quite true," Dumbledore replied. "In any case, I've been planning on having a conversation with Percy anyway but given everything else that has been going on, I've been holding off. I think it's best if he gets comfortable here before he gets a summons to come to the headmaster's office. That tends to make even the older students a bit nervous," he added, giving me a wink.

I looked down at the floor, knowing exactly what he had meant. I had been quite nervous the first time I had been called to see Dumbledore in his office. I had spent most of the morning trying to figure out what I had done wrong. By the time the meeting had arrived, I had convinced myself that I was going to get expelled from the school. Upon entering the office, I tripped over my own two feet, knocked a bunch of books off a shelf, and then missed the chair altogether when I went to sit down and ended up sitting on the floor. If I reacted that way, I could only imagine how uneasy Percy would be not to mention the teasing he would receive from classmates.

"Yeah, well being called to the headmaster's office isn't exactly always a good thing. Guess we have a tendency to just naturally think the worst is about to happen."

"Seem to remember that myself," Dumbledore said softly. "I will keep a closer eye on how things are developing with your younger brother. Especially, as I would hate to see him pulled from Hogwarts. He has a bright future here, just like you and Charlie have had."

I nodded thinking of how much those words would bother Percy, who according to Charlie was sick of getting compared to the two of us. Being the oldest, it was something that I couldn't understand. Other than doing what I thought my parents expected of me, there were no expectations for me to live up to but my own. What would it be like if I had an older sibling? Would I have done the same things that I had or would I have done things differently?

I had always wanted to set a good example for my younger siblings. To be able to save them from making the same mistakes I had made. I felt that it was my responsibility to make things easier for them. I never considered the fact that I was setting standards that any of them would feel pressured to live up to.

"I'll keep in mind what you've said and rest assured the other professors and I will keep an eye on the situation, as I told your father when he was here. Feel free to come to me or Professor McGonagall with any concerns you have," Dumbledore continued, breaking through my thoughts.

"I will, Professor," I replied, getting to my feet.

Turning I headed out of the headmaster's office, not sure if I should be more at ease or not. While it was good to know that Dumbledore and the other teachers were taking the situation serious, I didn't feel that anything had really been accomplished. I would have liked a definite solution instead of this feeling that the grownups were as much in the dark as I was. No one seemed sure exactly what was going on or how to handle it.

Growing up, I had always expected the grownups in my life to know exactly what to do. To have all the answers. That somehow, when I graduated from school I would somehow be able to have all the answers too. I was starting to realize that it wasn't always that way.

The school year continued. Like I had promised my father, I kept a closer eye on Percy. As the days went by, both Marcus and Jason seemed to be leaving my little brother alone more, though I wasn't sure why. True to our promise with our father, both Charlie and I spent more time with him, making sure he got to classes safely when we could. The professors seemed to be out in the corridors more too, putting a stop to not only the teasing my brother was facing but a lot of the other teasing that usually took place. Rubies disappeared from the hour glasses frequently for all of the houses, but it seemed as if more from Slytherin than any of the others. As September passed and October began, the disappearance of rubies seemed to slow down. The increased teachers' presence in the corridors seemed to be helping curb some of the teasing that took place among the students even if it hadn't put an end to it.

October also brought an increase in Quidditch practices. As our first match against Ravenclaw approached, my younger brother started pushing harder. As always, he wanted to win. Who didn't? I definitely couldn't fault him for that. What I did fault him for was the way he was handling practices.

Charlie always had been obsessed with Quidditch, whether he was watching it or playing it. As a team, we had always made jokes about that obsession, but it was all in good humor. Now, most of my teammates were referring to him as Captain Drill Sergeant, without the humor. The only thing keeping me from joining in was the fact that he was my brother and I felt I owed him that loyalty.

Still, I found myself walking slowly toward the Quidditch pitch Friday afternoon. I was already in my Quidditch robes and my broom in my left hand. It was out last practice before our first match and I was in no hurry to get there. I had no doubt it would be going late as Charlie will insist on getting in every bit of practice that we could before tomorrow. To add to my bad mood, dark clouds were gathering in the west. The air was already chilly. Getting wet would only make things seem colder.

"Does anyone understand this?" I heard Trent ask as I walked into the changing room. The rest of the Quidditch team had already gathered there except for Charlie. Seeing as he wouldn't be late for practice, I had a feeling he was already out on the pitch.

"Maybe if we turn the thing upside down," Alan commented, turning a huge stack of parchment papers around. "Nah! It makes just as much sense that way."

"Will you two quit it," Jennifer, scolded as she pulled on her Quidditch robes over her long sleeve sweater and pants. "I'm sure Charlie will explain things as we go along."

"How? We're not getting through this stack of plays in a normal practice time as it is. The guy has . . ."

Trent trailed off as Rob cleared his throat. All eyes turned to me and then quickly looked elsewhere, an almost guilty look on their faces. All except for Derek.

"You wusses," Derek said, from his position leaning against a pole. He was already in full Quidditch gear. "If you really feel that way, then don't be afraid to say things in front of his brother."

"What's going on?" I asked. I looked from teammate to teammate. Not one of them met my gaze. Even Rob looked away though he did start to answer my question.

"It's nothing, Bill. We're just all a little . . . "

"Oh, come on!" Derek exclaimed, interrupting him. "It's not us. It's our so-called captain. Face it. Charlie has completely lost it. Some of those plays in that thing would be difficult even for a professional team to pull off. He's going to get somebody killed."

"Now hold on," I said before anyone could say anything else. "I know he's been a little difficult but . . ."

"A little difficult? Snape is easier to deal with than Charlie has been this past week. I don't think we've gotten out of practice on time once this week and I don't ever remember any team ever practicing on a Sunday," Trent said.

"Have you even seen this, yet?" Trudy asked timidly, holding up the bound parchments.

I shook my head no. Other than practices, I hadn't been spending much time with Charlie and he wasn't exactly sharing things with me either as we hadn't really worked out the differences that arose at the beginning of the year.

Rob silently held his out to me. I took it. On the front were the words - Gryffindor Quidditch Play Book. I flipped through them. Some of them were actually pretty good and would probably work. Other ones were way above our ability as a team, especially with the newer players.

"Okay, so maybe he's a little overzealous."

Trent snorted. "That's the understatement of the year."

"So what are you guys saying? Do you want to forfeit the match tomorrow?"

"No one is saying that, Bill," Jennifer said. "But isn't there something you can do? Perhaps McGonagall . . ."

"There we go. We can have McGonagall remove Charlie as captain," Derek said gleefully, probably hoping that he could get the position with my brother out of the way.

I sighed. "Look, Charlie's just under pressure. He wants Gryffindor to defend the Quidditch cup. I'm sure once we get past tomorrow's match he'll loosen up."

"Sure, if we win. If we lose, he's liable to get worse," Derek said.

I shook my head. I could understand where my teammates were coming from and maybe if Charlie wasn't my brother, I'd be with them. The problem was, he was my brother and no matter what issues we might have between the two of us right now, I still felt the responsibility to stand up for him.

"Maybe Bill's right. Maybe Charlie will ease up after tomorrow's match," Jennifer finally said, breaking the silence that had fallen over the changing room.

"And this play book?" Trudy asked.

"We do the best we can," Jennifer said with a shrug slipping her gloves on and picking up her broom. "If we don't get out there, we're going to be late."

"Fine, I'll give him a few more hours," Trent said with a sigh, grabbing his own broom. He followed Jennifer out of the changing room.

One by one, my teammates left for the pitch. Rob fell in step beside me as we left the changing room ourselves.

"Nice speech there," he whispered to me.

"Thanks, though I think I'm only buying time. This team is one step away from mutiny."

"Maybe it won't be so bad."

_Two hours later: _

_Maybe it won't be so bad._

Those words had long ago been proved wrong. As soon as we joined Charlie on the Quidditch pitch we discovered he was serious about the play book. He had his own copy in his hand and opened as we walked onto the field. He didn't waste any time talking about the first play in the book, which was one that was at least feasible.

The dark clouds that had been gathering in the distant moved in on us. Within twenty minutes, all signs of the setting sun had been blocked out. With the clouds seemed to come sinking morale. The wind and the rain only made things worse. I could see my teammates getting more and more frustrated as nothing they did seem to please Charlie. I was surprised my brother could even speak any more after all the yelling he had done since the start of practice and a fair share of it had been directed at me.

"Hey, watch it!"

Charlie's yell drew my attention. Looking in that direction I saw him ducking close to his broom. Beyond him a bludger was flying away from him. Charlie watched it until the bludger got tired of the direction in was going in and changed direction, though still not coming toward him.

"What did you do that for, Alan?" Charlie exclaimed sitting up on his broom.

"Sorry. Must have hit the bludger the wrong direction," Alan called back, not sounding the least bit sorry.

"Perhaps he was holding the play book upside down," Trent suggested, the sarcasm clear in his voice.

"This isn't a joke!" Charlie exclaimed.

"Maybe practice isn't a joke but that play book of yours sure is!" Derek called out from his place in front of the hoops.

"No one asked you, Finigan. Besides, you wouldn't know a thing about strategy even if it hit you over the head."

"Let me get a hold of one of those bludgers and you won't have a chance to duck, Weasley."

Before anything else could be said, I stuck two fingers in my mouth sending a sharp whistle out over the field. Every last one of my teammates stopped wherever they were and were looking in my direction.

"Keep it up and I'll start deducting points from Gryffindor."

"You wouldn't," Derek said, though he didn't sound at all certain.

"You want to try me?" I asked looking in his direction. In the dim light it was impossible to read his face. When he didn't reply, I looked away from Derek and toward my brother. I was half tempted to just call a halt to practice right then myself, but I didn't. Charlie was still Captain of the team. Still, that didn't mean I couldn't try reasoning with him. "Look, Charlie, it's late. We're all tired, wet, and miserable. Why don't we call it a night so we can rest up for the match tomorrow?"

My brother was quiet for a moment. I half-expected him to call out another play for us to do. Instead, I finally saw him nod. "Fine. Practice is over. I'll see everyone at the game tomorrow."

And for the first time ever, Charlie was the first one to leave the pitch. Landing on the ground after dismissing us, he headed off toward the castle, head down. As he was walking into the wind, I wasn't sure if it was down in defeat or not.

Slowly, my teammates came out of the stunned silence that had fallen over everyone. Trudy already had the Quaffle in her hands. Heading to the ground, she landed by the equipment trunk and put the Quaffle in its spot. That left us the two Bludgers to round up as well as the SNatch.

Ten minutes later, everything was in the trunk, though the snitch had found us. Jennifer and I had been wrestling the second bludger into the box when I heard a buzzing by my ear. Turning my head, there floated the snitch. I only caught a brief look at it before Rob reached out and snatched it out of the air.

With the equipment all rounded up, we all headed toward the locker room. Though I was grateful to be able to get out of my soaking wet Quidditch robes, I hadn't liked the note our last practice had ended on. Judging from the silence around me, it wasn't sitting well with my teammates either.

**Percy's POV:**

_Saturday: Lunchtime_

I finished the last sentence I was on and looked down at my essay for History of Magic. It was a line longer than the minimum requirement. Though I could've easily written more, I had tried to wrap things up. My classmates, even Jason, had been leaving me more or less alone for the past week and I was trying not to give them any fuel.

Satisfied, I put the lid on the bottle of ink and gathered my things. Glancing up at the clock, I knew people would soon be making their way back from lunch to get ready for the Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw game. It was the first match of the year and the whole school was geared up for it. Personally, I would've rather spent the afternoon studying but Oliver and Emily had talked me into going which was why I had grabbed a quick lunch and then rushed back here to work on the essay.

Books in hand, I headed toward the steps of the dormitory. I'd have enough time to get things put away before heading down to the Quidditch pitch. I had gone up about four steps when voices made me stop.

"I hate to say this, but I think Derek might have the right idea. Charlie is getting out of control."

"I'm with you there, Trudy, but I still don't like the idea of forfeiting the match."

"Are you really having fun, Trent?"

"No."

"I don't know about you but I wanted to join the Quidditch team to have fun."

"Right about now, I'm glad I'm only a back-up."

"You're still coming down for the team-meeting aren't you, Jordan?"

"No, Trudy, I'm staying neutral. I will be in the stands cheering you guys on though if Gryffindor takes the field."

Laughter coming through the portal ended the conversation. More Gryffindors were coming into the common room. I hurried up the steps to my dormitory before I got caught.

Walking into the dormitory, I headed over to my bed. I dumped the pile of books on the bed and then sat down beside them, wondering what I should do. I was sure I hadn't misinterpreted what I had overheard. Trent had clearly said they were talking about forfeiting the game today. I knew Charlie would be crushed. Not only did he love Quidditch but he still believed his team had a chance to beat Ravenclaw.

I was at a loss at what to do. Did I go to Charlie and tell him what I had overheard? Give him a head's up on what was going on? Or did I keep quiet? Pretend that I had never heard a thing? Which was the best option? Either one had its flaws. Then there was Bill. Where did he stand on the subject? Was he of the same opinion of Trudy and Trent? If he was and I warned Charlie, he might get upset with me.

Why did I have to overhear anything?

Still trying to make a decision, I glanced over at the bedside table where Scabbers' cage sat. The cage was empty. Forgetting all about Charlie and the Quidditch team, I quickly got to my feet. My rat had been in the cage when I had left to grab something to eat. I couldn't remember if he had been in the cage when I had come into the dormitory for my books or not, as I hadn't really focused on anything except getting my books.

Where had he gotten to? Had I forgotten to latch the cage or had someone let him go on purpose?

The answer to the latter question didn't really matter much right now. Scabbers was missing and I wasn't about to go to any game without locating him first. I started looking around my bed first. I opened the drawers on the bedside table, checked under the bed, and opened my trunk just to be sure. I found no sign of my missing rat.

Moving away from my bed, I started looking around the rest of the dormitories. I was looking under one of the beds when I heard footsteps. Coming out from under the bed, I checked to see who it was, relieved to see that it was only Oliver.

"What are you doing?"

"Looking for Scabbers. He's run off," I replied, ducking back underneath the bed. I restrained from voicing my other thought, which was that somebody had rat-napped him. Oliver would only tell me I was borrowing trouble again.

"He can't have gotten far," Oliver replied. I heard his footsteps heading across the room. Finishing looking under the current bed, I stood up ready to head for the next bed. I saw Oliver checking under Sky's bed.

Thankful to have help, I moved on, hoping Oliver was right. Mom would kill me if I told her I had lost Scabbers but it wasn't only that. I enjoyed having a pet. A rat might not have been the most glamourous pet, but I had grown attached to Scabbers.

I kept searching - pulling back blankets, checking under pillows and beds. It wasn't long before I heard Oliver exclaim, "here he is."

I hurried in my friend's direction. He was standing next to Jason's bed looking down. I noticed a smirk on his face and wondered what was going.

Reaching Oliver's side, it didn't take me long to figure out what the smirk was about. Scabbers was on Jason's bed, contentedly chewing on a piece of parchment. It didn't take me long to realize that Jason's essay for Snape's class that was due on Monday, had been written on the parchment. Scabbers had already chewed a decent size hole in the parchment.

"Wonder if Snape will buy a rat ate my homework excuse," Oliver joked as I grabbed Scabbers off of the bed.

"Jason's going to kill me."

"Only if you tell him what happened. No one else is here. Scabbers isn't the only rat in the tower. He can't prove anything. Just put Scabbers back in the cage and keep quiet."

"But . . ."

"Or you can tell Jason what happened. Somehow, I don't think he'll take it to well"

Oliver had a point. Jason and I weren't exactly friends. One of my other classmates may have been understanding. Jason, however, would just assume I had done it on purpose.

I walked across the room and put Scabbers back in his cage. Closing the door and securing it, I turned around.

"You ready to go. The Quidditch match will start soon."

"Yeah, I'm ready," I told him.

~_I wonder if there will actually be a match, _~ I thought, as I grabbed my cloak and followed Oliver down the steps.


	17. Chapter 17

**_Rob's POV:_**

I couldn't believe what was happening. Derek, Trent, and Trudy stood on one side of the locker room. Bill and Jennifer were facing them, leaving me in the middle. According to the clock, it was one minute until match time. We had five minutes after that to take the field or we would forfeit the game. Charlie had left the changing room a few minutes earlier, when Rob, Trent and Trudy had called for a vote as to whether Charlie should remain as captain or not.

Bill's comment about the team being one step away from mutiny came back to me. He had hit the nail on the head with that observation.

"It's your call, Wood," Derek commented. "Do we play today or not?"

I looked in his direction. I understood where they were coming from and believed that things needed to be addressed. However, I wasn't ready to forfeit yet. To just not take the field and let Ravenclaw win. Not to mention I felt some loyalty to support Bill. I knew he and Charlie still weren't on the best of terms and yet he was sticking up for him. Given that Bill was my best friend, I felt I owed him a little support.

"I say we play," I told Derek, looking him in the eye. "I don't want to just hand the match to Ravenclaw. Let's go out there and play our best. Afterwards, we can meet again and talk everything out."

"I'm not going through another practice like yesterday," Trent said.

"I agree," Bill said, from behind me. "I'll admit something needs to be done. Things need to change. Forfeiting a match is not the way to go about it though."

"If we agree not to have another practice until things get resolved, I'll play today," Trudy said, glancing at Trent and then at Derek.

Trent slowly nodded his consent. I glanced to Derek. My fellow classmate did not appear to have changed his mind at all. His face was still stormy as his eyes roamed around the locker room. Finally I saw him nod.

"Fine," he said giving in.

"Then let's get out there," Jennifer said, heading for the door. Trent, Trudy and Derek picked their brooms up and followed her.

"Thanks" Bill said to me as the two of us followed our teammates out of the locker room.

"I only bought us some time," I replied. "I just hope we can do good today or who knows what direction this will go in. I don't know about you but I don't want to come in last because we forfeit the season."

"I know. I'm not sure what's gotten into him. Maybe I should've talked to him on my own before it came to this, though given the circumstances I'm not sure he would have listened."

"Don't worry about it right now," I told him, clapping him on the shoulder. Though he was trying to deny it, the fact that he and Charlie were still not really talking bothered him. I knew how much my friend cared about his younger siblings, but especially Percy. I knew he was still upset with Charlie for putting anything else before their younger brother but I also knew that when it came down to it, he'd stand next to Charlie until the very end, whether he was asked to or not. "We've got a game to play."

Bill never got a chance to reply, as we stepped out of the locker room and found Charlie still standing there.

"They didn't say a word to me," our captain said, looking at me and then to Bill. "What's going on?"

"For today, assuming we all get to the pitch in time, we're playing Quidditch," Bill told him, grabbing his brother's arm and heading in the direction of the pitch.

I fell into step behind them.

"And after this match?"

"We plan on discussing things," Bill told him honestly.

Charlie nodded as the three of us reached the pitch. Joining Derek, Trudy, Trent and Jennifer the seven of us strode out onto the field. The Ravenclaw team had already gathered with Madam Hooch in the center of the field. We walked across the grass to join them.

"The Gryffindor team has finally appeared, just under the deadline," Jake Carlton, a seventh year Hufflepuff, announced as we joined the others. "Seems Ravenclaw isn't going to get the forfeit after all."

Around us, the crowd was cheering. They were excited about the first match of the year. Even the green of Slytherin was represented in the stands.

"Captains shake hands," Madam Hooch instructed.

Charlie shook hands with Chad Murphy. Both captains had a look of determination on their faces.

"Everyone mount your brooms," Madam Hooch instructed us. All fourteen of us followed her instructions. I couldn't help but wonder how well prepared we actually were. Some of our practices hadn't gone too well. "You all know the rules and I expect a clean game from all of you."

Madam Hooch released the snitch. The little golden ball zoomed away, soon lost in the surroundings. Next the Bludgers were released. The two heavy balls zoomed away, glad to be free of their confinements. At Madam Hooch's direction, the rest of us took to the air, the Keepers heading for the hoops.

The two teams formed a circle in the air above Madam Hooch. Once the Keeper's were in place, she tossed the Quaffle into the air in the middle of the circle. Chad and myself made a move toward the Quaffle, the rest of our teams spreading out. The game was on.

I managed to snag the Quaffle out of the air just before Murphy got a hold of it. Dodging around Murphy, I headed in the direction of the Ravenclaw hoops. Craig Lawrence flew in front of me and I had to duck underneath him. As he was looking for the Snitch, I don't even think he saw me.

I was almost to the Ravenclaw hoops when Michael Sands hit a Bludger in my direction. I quickly tossed the Quaffle to Trent who was off to my right even as I did a quick dive to avoid the Bludger. Leveling off I glanced around the pitch to see where the Quaffle was.

It was down by the Ravenclaw hoops. Unfortunately Trent was no longer in possession of it. Murphy had it and was in the process of turning back toward the Gryffindor hoops. Bill sent a Bludger flying in Murphy's direction but the Ravenclaw captain easily ducked the shot. The Bludger sailed by him and caught the broom of Chad's younger brother Philip, who was the Ravenclaw Keeper this year. Though off balance for a few moments, Philip was able to stay on his broom.

Chad meanwhile was making his way in my direction, Trent following him. I swerved to my left converging on the group. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed Bill and Jennifer trying to coordinate an attack with the Bludgers. Chad noticed it too and even as my two teammates sent the Bludgers sailing in his direction went to pass the Quaffle to one of the Winston twins, who even after knowing them for six years, I couldn't tell apart.

Putting on a surge of speed, I charged forward. My aim was to try and intercept the pass. Unfortunately, I wasn't close enough and had to settle for knocking the Quaffle away. Having kept an eye on things, Trudy was in position to capitalize on my move. She snagged the falling Quaffle and tucked it safely under her arm.

Trudy did a sharp turn and headed back for the Ravenclaw hoops. Getting close enough, Trudy got ready to take a shot at the hoops. Philip was hovering around the middle one waiting to see which hoop she would throw it at. He needn't have worried though as the other Winston twin ran into Trudy just as she went to release the Quaffle.

I sped toward the fallen Quaffle. Just beating Chad to it, I quickly gained some altitude heading toward the left right most hoop. Seeing my move, Philip was heading that direction too. Getting close enough to be able to toss the Quaffle through the hoop, I aimed and threw. Just after I released it, I felt a Bludger glance off my left shoulder.

Trying to maintain my position on the broom I wasn't able to see if Philip could block the throw. The roar of the crowd though gave me the answer. I had scored.

So far, we weren't doing too shabby despite the three new players we had.

**_Percy's POV:_**

We watched as Rob was able to get the Quaffle past the Ravenclaw Keeper. Around me, my schoolmates cheered. Wrapped up in the game, I cheered along with them. The goal made the score fifty to eighty in favor of Ravenclaw. Though we were losing, we still had a good chance at winning if Charlie could catch the Snitch.

The Seekers however were still circling the pitch aimlessly. Neither one of them had given any signs that they had caught any sign of the tiny golden ball.

"How long is this game?" Penelope asked, sounding somewhat bored. From what I could tell, she wasn't paying much attention to the game anyway as she had spent most of the time whispering to Cinda. Not to mention, if she was really into the game she would be with her classmates rooting for Ravenclaw not hanging out in the Gryffindor section.

"It depends. The game can only end with someone catching the Golden Snitch. Theoretically, the game could be as short as a minute or so, though no one has ever caught the snitch that fast. Shortest game on record is eight minutes, when the Chudley Cannons seeker, Fred Nammons, caught the Snitch to win the World Cup ten years ago," Oliver replied.

"Wow," Penelope remarked, sounding like Oliver's Quidditch fact had been the most interesting thing she had heard all day. "It's amazing you can remember facts about the game like that."

Oliver just shrugged, his eyes never leaving the action out on the pitch. He seemed totally oblivious to Penelope's attempts of getting his attention. Nor had he bothered wondering why she had joined us instead of sitting with her own house. Sure, he was friendly enough toward her, but it was obvious he didn't feel the same way about her as she did him. Obvious, that is, to everyone besides Penelope.

"Oh, gag, me," Emily said under her breath, from beside me. On her other side, Kathy smothered a laugh. Though I felt the same way she did I chose not to show any outward sign of that.

I hadn't told anyone about what I had overheard in Gryffindor Tower not even when everyone had been speculating where Charlie and his team were. I had a feeling the talk of forfeiting the match had come up in the locker room. Had actually been expecting it. I felt relief when the Gryffindor Quidditch Team had taken the field. I knew what this meant to Charlie.

From the looks of how they were playing though, it didn't seem as if all the tension had been resolved. Even I could tell all of the players were making mistakes. Derek had even thrown the Quaffle in Charlie's direction one time when he had stopped it. Rob had been able to intercept it though. Part of me wondered if Charlie had even noticed. My usually intense older brother, didn't seem to be concentrating on the game. He wasn't even bothering calling out instructions to his teammates or say anything about the mistakes

A groan erupted around me. I directed my attention back to the pitch to see what had caused it.

Trudy had ducked to avoid a Bludger and in doing so had dropped the Quaffle. Ravenclaw had capitalized on this, as one of the twin Chasers had managed to catch the falling Quaffle. The Gryffindor Chasers had changed directions and were trying to catch up to her. The twin with the Quaffle passed it to her sister as she dodged a Bludger that Bill sent streaking in her direction.

The other twin meanwhile made a streak toward the Gryffindor hoops. Derek was hovering in front of the middle hoop, carefully watching the approaching Ravenclaw Chaser. The Winston twin faked like she was going to throw toward the hoop on her left. As Derek moved that way to block it, she quickly changed direction and threw toward the right. Derek moved in that direction but couldn't get there in time. To the delight of the Ravenclaw fans, the Quaffle sailed through the hoop.

"Ravenclaw now leads 90 to 50," Jake announced even as the score was changed to reflect it.

The game continued. It didn't take long for Ravenclaw to score another five goals. Rob and the other two Gryffindor Chasers just couldn't seem to get things coordinated. The Ravenclaw team kept intercepting passes.

"And with that goal Ravenclaw extends its lead to 150 to 90. Looks like the only chance Gryffindor is going to have today is for Charlie Weasley to catch the snitch and do it before Ravenclaw gets to far ahead. So far though, the Snitch is being elusive to both Seekers." There was a slight pause in Jake's commentary as the Quaffle was put back into play. "The Gryffindor Chasers, led by Rob Wood makes another attempt on the Ravenclaw hoops. Rob passes the Quaffle to Trent just as Mandy Winston makes a grab with it. Trent ducks underneath Molly Winston and then passes to Trudy as he ducks under a Bludger sent his way by Michael Sands."

"Trudy's way is blocked by Ravenclaw's other beater, Phil Torrence. She quickly throws the Quaffle to Rob, but the throw is off and the Quaffle sails over Rob's head. Chad Murphy dives for the Quaffle and catches it just before either of them hit the ground and the direction of play changes toward the Gryffindor hoops."

"And it looks as if Charlie Weasley has spotted the Snitch as he comes down into the area of play. He's definitely concentrating on something. Craig Lawrence is heading toward him but he's no where near them right now. Gryffindor just might have this match despite their dismal play but no! A bludger hits Charlie between the shoulder blades knocking him from his broom."

My breath caught, as I watched Charlie fall through the air. Though his pursuit of the Snitch had taken him lower than what he had been it was still quite a fall. Emily slipped her arm around my shoulders as we watched Madam Hooch and Madam Pomfrey rush across the pitch to where Charlie lay very still. The crowd had grown quiet and Jake's next commentary seemed awfully loud in comparison.

"The Bludger Charlie was hit by had been sent in that direction by his own teammate and brother, Bill Weasley. Bill had been aiming for Chad who ducked the Bludger. This could be a bad turn of events for Gryffindor."

By this time, Bill had joined the group out on the field. I finally let out the breath I had been holding as Charlie slowly pushed himself up off the ground. The crowd watched as Charlie talked to both Madam Hooch and Madam Pomfrey. I wished I knew what was being said.

After a few more minutes, Charlie was helped to his feet by Bill still looking a little dazed. I was surprised though when Charlie took his broom from Madam Hooch and mounted it. I couldn't believe he was going to continue.

"Well folks, looks like Charlie Weasley is going to continue as he and Bill join their Gryffindor teammates in the air. Madam Hooch blows her whistle and play continues. Ravenclaw is still in possession of the Quaffle. Chad passes to Molly who throws the Quaffle toward the middle hoop. Derek Finigan is just able to deflect it. Chad recovers it though and throws it toward the right side hoop . . . Ravenclaw scores!"

I listened to the commentary but I was watching Charlie. He still looked kind of dazed as he flew above the action of the game looking for the Snitch. Craig Lawrence was doing the same, though I noticed he was staying closer to Charlie this time, apparently wanting to have a better chance at the Snitch should Charlie spot it.

The game continued not to go well for Gryffindor. Anytime they seemed to get something positive going, something happened to spoil it. In the time it took for Ravenclaw to score six more goals, Gryffindor only managed to score one. I took my eyes off the Seekers long enough to glance down at Chad who was taking another shot at the Gryffindor hoops.

Derek managed to catch the Quaffle. He threw it hard toward Rob, yelling something inaudible at him.

"And the Snitch has been spotted again!" Jake suddenly announced.

Everyone in the stands suddenly looked around for the Seekers. Charlie and Craig were side by side, streaking toward the ground. Ahead of them, a quick flash of gold was all that could be seen of the Snitch. Around me, everyone was yelling for Charlie to catch the Snitch.

About five feet above the ground they evened out. Side by side, the two seekers streaked down the length of the pitch.

"They're neck and neck! The Snitch is just inches from being caught!" Jake announced excitedly. "Oh, and here comes a Bludger toward them. Craig ducks low on his broom, just missing being hit. Charlie Weasley tries to change direction but the Bludger catches his shoulder, knocking him from his broom again."

There was a collective gasp from the crowd followed by a subdued cheer from the Ravenclaw section.

"Ravenclaw wins, as Craig Lawrence catches the Snitch." I heard Jake announce even as I started down the row of people.

I struggled through the crowd trying to make my way down to the field. Even though the match was over, no one was leaving the stands.

It seemed like forever before I was finally able to reach the ground. Reaching the pitch, I hurried toward the small crowd that had gathered around Charlie. Bill, Rob and Jennifer were the only three Gryffindors still on the field. I also noticed Tonks standing nearby along with Charlie's best friend Rodney. Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore had joined Madam Hooch and Madam Pomfrey. The four teachers and Bill were all surrounding Charlie.

As I hurried across the field toward them, Rob looked up and saw me. Leaving his teammates, he hurried in my direction.

"Is he . . ."

"He's hurt pretty bad," Rob told me honestly. "They're getting ready to move him up to the castle," he told me, slipping his arm around my shoulders. He led me over to where he had been standing with Jennifer.

I didn't resist him. As much as I wanted to go to Charlie, I also knew I would just be in the way.

_Saturday: 10 p.m._

"You two should really go to bed," Rob said as he came into the common room once again. He wore a bathrobe over his pajamas.

Oliver and I were the only two still up. Bill had sent me back to Gryffindor Tower around seven. Though Madam Pomfrey had healed the fractured shoulder blade Charlie had suffered from the second Bludger hit, he had yet to regain consciousness. I hadn't wanted to leave but Bill had threatened to carry me out of the hospital wing himself if I hadn't gone willingly. Three hours later, I still hadn't heard anything. I didn't know how Rob could even suggest that I go to bed when I didn't know for sure that Charlie was going to be okay.

I shook my head, staring straight ahead into the fire.

"I'm going to stay up with, Percy," Oliver replied even as he tried to stifle a yawn.

"I'll sit up with him," Rob told his younger brother. "Why don't you head up to bed."

I glanced over at Oliver and found him looking in my direction. I nodded to him that it was okay. It was getting late.

With another yawn, Oliver stood up and headed for the steps to our dormitory. Rob sat down in the chair his younger brother had vacated. I was hoping that he wouldn't try saying anything to try and make me feel better. I didn't feel like trying to be cheered up. The only thing I wanted to hear was that Charlie had woken up.

I wasn't sure how long the two of us sat there in silence. I know I started to nod off a few times. I was starting to do so again when I heard the portrait covering the entrance slide open. I glanced over my shoulder to see Bill coming through the portrait hole.

"Charlie?" I asked, getting to my feet.

Bill looked surprised to see me still up and I was waiting for a lecture. One didn't come. "He'll be okay. He woke up around nine this evening. He remembered what happened and wanted to know who had won. I sat with him until he went back to sleep. Madame Pomfrey expects to release him tomorrow sometime."

I let out a sigh of relief.

"Now, I think its about time the rest of us get to bed. It's almost midnight."

I nodded. To tired to argue with him even if I had wanted to. As I headed up the stairs to my dormitory, Bill and Rob headed down to theirs.

The first year dormitory was dark and almost quiet as I walked in. The soft snores of a couple of my classmates were the only sound.

I took out my wand and whispered, "Lumos." The end of the wand started glowing and I made my way quietly across the room to my own bed. Pulling back the covers, I climbed into my bed. "Nox," I whispered quietly, making the wand go out.

As tired as I had been down in the common room, sleep refused to come easily. I laid there in bed, staring up at the canopy. The events of the day kept playing through my mind and wouldn't let rest come to me.

I woke the following morning to sunshine peeking through a crack in the curtains surrounding my bed. Not really feeling rested, I threw back the blankets anyway. I wasn't sure how late it was, and I doubted I could fall back asleep even if I wanted to.

I pushed the curtains back to find an empty dormitory. I grabbed my watch from the bedside table. Nine thirty. My classmates were probably all down in the Great Hall eating breakfast. Swinging my legs over the side of the bed, I noticed a piece of parchment on the bedside table. I plucked it from its spot and read it.

_Percy,_

_Wasn't sure what time you finally went to sleep last night so I decided not to wake you._

_Catch up with you later._

_Oliver_

Tossing the parchment back onto the bedside table, I got to my feet. After changing into my clothes, I headed down the steps to the Gryffindor Common Room. A few people who were normal early risers were there but no one paid me any mind as I crossed the room and headed out of the portal.

As was normal for a weekend morning, the Great Hall wasn't packed. Not having classes to get to, we weren't all trying to grab breakfast at the same time. The Gryffindor table was still fairly crowded though. I guess after the disappointing loss the day before, none of my fellow Gryffindors were moving fast today.

I spotted Oliver, Emily and Ellen at the far end of the table. Making my way carefully between our table and the Ravenclaw table, which was almost empty, I slipped into the empty spot next to Oliver.

"Morning," he greeted me, glancing over at me.

I returned the greeting, still not feeling completely awake.

"Word has it, Charlie's going to be okay," Ellen commented.

I nodded, wondering if my older brother had been released from the hospital wing yet.

The three of them then returned to the conversation they had been having before I had joined them. I only paid half attention to the talk going on around me as I was still trying to wake up and I also wasn't feeling all that social right about now.

After breakfast the four of us grabbed our Charms books, wands and notes and headed out to the courtyard. The day was warmer than the last few days had been and we weren't the only Hogwarts students that were taking advantage of the weather. Many of our classmates had also taken their school work outside.

Finding an empty corner of the courtyard, we settled down and opened our books. Professor Flitwick was giving an exam, theory and practical, the following day and we had decided to study together. Though I had found time to study yesterday morning another review of the material wouldn't hurt.

After an hour of studying, all of us were easily managing to do both the levitation charm and the hover charm on our school books. Feeling good about our test tomorrow, the girls decided they wanted to take a break from schoolwork. The two of them wandered off in search of some of their friends from other houses. Oliver and I took our stuff up to our dormitory and then he went off to the library to work on the History of Magic essay that I had done the day before.

On my own, I decided to take a book and find a quiet place on the grounds to read until lunch. As I headed back downstairs, I wondered where my brothers were. This was the longest I had gone without seeing one of them since Dad had made his visit to the school. I knew they had been keeping an eye on me, just like I knew that Dad wanted me to stay here at Hogwarts. That and the fact that I seemed to be doing things that my classmates couldn't do yet without much direction, was what was making me stick things out here. I didn't want to let Dad down and even if I didn't want to admit it to anyone the things I could do were starting to scare me. I wanted to learn more about what I was doing. Wanted to feel in control of things. To accomplish that, I knew I needed to stay here.

I ended up heading down toward the lake. I was sure I would find a spot in the area that I could sit and read without anyone bothering me. Though I passed many of my schoolmates on my walk to the lake, there weren't many kids at the lake itself. Though it was a warm day for October, it wasn't warm enough to enjoy the waters of the lake. However, that was the last thing I was interested in doing. There were stories of creatures that lived in the lake, including a giant squid. Rumor had it the squid was friendly but I didn't care to find out for myself.

A few boys were having a rock skipping contest on the shore. I also saw a few couples walking slowly around the lake, holding hands. I chose a direction away from the rock skipping contest. I planned on finding a tree to sit under.

I hadn't walked very far when I noticed Charlie sitting under a nearby tree. He had a book open on his lap but he wasn't looking at it. Instead, he was staring out across the waters of the lake. Given up on a search for a spot to read, I headed in his direction.

"I thought I told you I wanted to be left alone," Charlie said as I approached. He was still looking out across the lake.

His words surprised me but as I didn't want one of my older brothers not talking to me, I figured the best response was a quick retreat. "Sorry," I said, turning to walk back the way I had come.

"Perce, wait. You don't need to go," Charlie said. I looked back in his direction to see him looking my way now. "I thought you were Rodney."

"I thought Rodney was your best friend?" I said, feeling confused. I stood where I was at, still debating on whether I should leave or not.

"He is, it's just that he's been trying to cheer me up today and I really don't feel like being cheered up right now."

"You mean about the Quidditch team?"

Charlie's face took on one of surprise and confusion. It was clear that I had guessed the subject right.

"Don't tell me that the team's near mutiny is getting around school, now. I bet Finigan is the one who leaked it."

"No, it's not going around school. At least I don't think it is?" I told my brother. I didn't exactly talk to a lot of people, but if it was going around that any of the houses Quidditch teams were even thinking of a mutiny, I was pretty sure even I would hear of it. I told my brother about the conversation I had over heard the day before.

He nodded, although I didn't miss the look of relief that passed over my brother's face.

"Looks like your big brother isn't all that great of a Quidditch Captain after all. I just wanted us to make a decent showing this season and instead my team all hates me. I really messed things up and then I couldn't even keep my head in the game yesterday. I really let them all down."

"Have you told them that?" I asked, sitting down on the ground beside Charlie.

"Haven't had the chance. Other than Bill and Jennifer, I haven't even seen any of them since the game yesterday. I know they planned on meeting to discuss whether or not we were going to continue with the season but I don't know the details."

"Maybe you should try talking to them instead of hiding out here then."

"Is that what you think I'm doing?"

"It sure looks that way. If you weren't hiding, you wouldn't be sitting at the lake by yourself pretending to do schoolwork," I told him.

Charlie opened his mouth to say something and then closed it again. He shook his head and started laughing.

"What's so funny?"

"You," he replied. "I'm supposed to be the older brother and here you are giving me advice."

"I've got two older brothers to learn from." I said, looking down at the ground as I felt my cheeks grow warm.

"Well, if that's the case then at least, I'm doing something right this year, and I need to start setting a better example for not only you but the other first years too," Charlie commented. I thought about asking him for an explanation of that statement but decided not to. If he wanted me to know, he would bring it up himself. "You're right though, I need to stop hiding down here and actually face things. Bill is right, too. I need to start taking my responsibilities seriously." Charlie put his arm around my shoulders and gave me a hug. "I'm kind of glad you're here this year, kid."

"Maybe sometime I'll be able to say the same thing."

"You're still not happy here?"

"It's not as bad as it was before. I just wish that Jason and his pal would leave me alone. I can put up with Marcus, as I don't see him constantly, but it's almost impossible to not let someone get to you when you share a room with them."

"Do you want Bill or me to talk to him?"

I shook my head. "It'll only make things worse."

"If you change your mind, let me know, okay. I'll do anything for you. You know that right?"

I nodded my head.

"Besides, at least I don't hear Charlie this or Bill that every time I walk into a classroom," I commented, trying to change the subject. "You were right about that letting up, so maybe I just need to wait the rest of the stuff out, too, and at least I have Oliver and Emily."

"See. Something else we were right about. Didn't we tell you would make some friends?" Charlie said. I nodded my consent. "What about Sheldon? I've seen you spend some time with him. Don't you consider him a friend?"

"I'm not sure. Sometimes, I feel like he just hangs out with me because he's friends with Oliver."

"More of an acquaintance than a friend?"

"Yeah."

Charlie glanced down at his watch. "We should probably head up to the castle for lunch. Guess, I'll finish this reading later," he said closing the book.

The two of us got to our feet, and started walking toward the castle.


	18. Chapter 18

**_Charlie's POV:_**

I spotted Jennifer in the courtyard as Percy and I headed up to the castle. Given the number of books that she was gathering, I had a feeling she had been working on her homework. Now would be a good time to talk to her as she wasn't with any of her friends, however I was hesitant to leave Percy. Dad had told us to look out for him and if I was really serious about taking my responsibilities more seriously, then looking out for my little brother had to come above talking to my classmate.

The decision was taken out of my hands however, as Percy spotted Oliver heading into the castle and hurried ahead to join him. Alone now, I crossed the courtyard to where Jennifer was. I felt fortunate that she was one of the first teammates I had run into as I thought she would be more receptive to me than some of my other teammates. Trent and Trudy I didn't know well, and given what Percy had told me, I evidently was not high on their popularity list right now. I planned on approaching Derek last. Being my brother, I was hoping that Bill would at least give me a chance, though I knew we had to work more things out than just the issues with the team. Not to mention, he had at least still been talking to me before the game yesterday. As for Rob, I figured he'd follow Bill's lead.

"Here, let me take a few of those for you," I said, as I reached her. I took the top three books off the pile she was holding. The title of the top one read, _Egyptian Wizards and the Pyramids_. "Working on that essay for our History of Magic class?"

"Yeah," Jennifer replied, after thanking me for taking the books. "I've been so busy I haven't had time to start it and its due on Tuesday."

She hadn't said it, but I had a feeling she had been busy due to my long Quidditch practices.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, sounding genuinely concerned.

"I'll be fine, though I'm under orders to take it easy for the next couple of days. Madame Pomfrey had to heal a couple of bones and told me I was lucky I had a hard head."

"Glad to hear that. You gave us quite a scare yesterday."

I nodded, feeling a little embarrassed by her heartfelt concerned. I decided it was time to change the topic.

"There's actually something I wanted to ask you, Jenn. I know the team hasn't been too happy with me lately, and I can't say I blame you all. However, before you all decide to elect a new Captain or quit or whatever it is you're planning, I want a chance to talk to you all, say around two this afternoon? I'll only need a half hour of your time tops."

Jennifer nodded. "I'm willing to do that. We were actually planning on all getting together this afternoon anyway, to discuss the situation. It's only fair to hear you out first. I'll talk to Trent and Trudy for you, if you want?"

"Thanks," I told her, feeling relieved on both counts. "Let's meet in the Transfiguration Classroom. It'll give us some privacy and I know I won't have any problem getting permission from McGonogall to use the classroom."

"Okay."

We had reached the Great Hall by this time. I walked with her to the end of the table that she usually occupied with her friends. Placing the books on the table, I said good-bye and headed toward where Rodney was already sitting.

"Are you in a better mood?" he inquired as I sat down next to him.

"Yes, the time alone and the talk with Percy did me good."

"A talk with your little brother, Percy?" Rodney asked, a note of disbelief in voice.

"How many Percys do I know?"

"Yeah, your little brother sure is one of a kind," Trey commented, filling his plate with the food on the table before us.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," Trey said quickly, suddenly becoming very interested in his plate.

I chose to let the comment go as I didn't want to start an argument with my friend. Besides, I already had enough people mad at me. I looked at Rodney. "Sorry about snapping at you earlier."

Rodney shrugged. "It's no big deal. It's been a rough weekend for you, and you wanted to be alone. I shouldn't have pushed as much. All water under the bridge as far as I'm concerned, mate."

"Good," I said relieved. "Now about Herbology and Charms, any chance you can help me get caught up tonight?" I asked. I had let a lot of my school work slide lately and though none of my professors had talked to me about it yet, I had a feeling those lectures wouldn't be far behind.

Rodney laughed. "I'll try but I make no promises, Charlie. Some miracles are beyond even me."

Despite everything that was going on, I laughed. Academics had never been my strong suit and Rodney didn't let me forget that. Still, he had always helped me with the class work since our first year at Hogwarts so I couldn't complain. Luckily, the two classes I didn't have with Rodney now, Care of Magical Creatures and Healing Magic, were also the two that interested me the most.

I only half paid attention the conversation that followed, as I tried to figure out what to say to Bill, Rob and Derek that would at least get them to hear me out. I had accepted the fact that it might be too late to keep the team together. That nothing I could say would convince them to give me a second chance. At this point, though I planned on making a case for us to continue the season, the most I was hoping for was a chance to apologize. What I hoped I was not too late to do was repair my relationship with my brother. Bill and I had a lot more to talk about than just Quidditch.

As Rodney, Trey and I finished up our lunch, I found myself looking around the Great Hall. It had emptied quite a bit by this time, and there were a lot of empty seats at all four of the house tables. Looking down the Gryffindor table in the direction that Bill usually sat with his friends, I saw my older brother still at the table, Rob sitting next to him. A few chairs down Derek was finishing up his own lunch, his own friends nowhere to be seen.

_~It's now or never,~ _I thought, getting to my feet.

"Where are you going?" Rodney asked, looking up at me.

"I need to got talk to a few people. I'll be right back," I told him.

I walked down the aisle between the Gryffindor and Slytherin tables. Reaching the spot where Bill and Rob were sitting, on the opposite side of the table from me I stopped. Both of them stopped their conversation and looked up at me.

"Do the two of you have a few minutes? There's something I need to talk to you about."

"Yeah, sure Charlie. Have a seat," Bill said, indicating the empty bench I was standing behind.

I didn't make a move to sit down though. Instead, I looked down at the table to where my third teammate was sitting.

"Derek," I called out. I waited for the team's Keeper to look in my direction before continuing. "Can I have a few minutes of your time? I've got something I'd like to say to all three of you."

"This best be good, Weasley," Finningan said, even as he got to his feet and walked toward me.

Finningan reached where I was standing and then sat down on the bench, his back to Bill and Rob. Deciding that things would seem less formal if I wasn't standing, I sat down on the bench doing my best to face all three of my fellow Gryffindors by sitting sideways my left arm on the table top.

"I know the team was going to get together this afternoon and discuss the current situation."

"If you mean voting about whether or not to get rid of our current captain, then yeah we did plan on it," Derek replied.

Bill and Rob remained silent though I did see them exchange a look.

"Well, before you do whatever it was you're planning on doing," I continued, not missing that Derek had phrased things differently than Jennifer. I had a feeling Derek had been the start of the talk of forfeiting yesterday's match. "I would like a bit of your time. I have some things I want to say to the team in general and would like to say them to everyone at the same time."

"Like we want to hear anything you have to say," Derek said.

"Hold on, Derek," Rob said speaking up. "We were all going to get together this afternoon anyway. I think it's only fair that we let Charlie say whatever it is he wants to say before we have our discussion."

Derek looked over his shoulder at Rob and Bill. My older brother remained silent, his expression completely neutral. He either had nothing to say or was choosing to stay out of things at this point. Given the tension between the two of us, I wasn't sure which it was.

"Fine. We let him speak and then ditch him as our team captain," Derek replied.

"Then can we meet at two o'clock in McGonagall's classroom?" I asked, looking around at the three of them.

Bill and Rob nodded their consent. Derek shrugged his shoulders in reply and then got to his feet. Without another word, the Gryffindor Keeper strode out of the Great Hall. It was clear to me that he had only agreed because the other two had and had no intention of really listening to me even if he did show up.

I sighed. There wasn't much I could do about it. Derek had never liked me. We had been at odds this entire year and now it appeared as if he had found a way to sway the others to his way of thinking.

Taking my gaze from Derek's retreating form, I looked across the table at Rob and Bill. They were both gazing back at me and it felt as though they could read my thoughts.

"I'll do my best to make sure that Derek doesn't convince the others to just dismiss whatever you have to say to us, Charlie," Rob told me.

I found myself nodding again, as I was at a lost for words. The Quidditch team meant everything to me and the last two days I had made me aware of how close I was to losing it. I looked from Rob to Bill.

"Look, Charlie, I don't want to see you hurt but I'm not sure what else I can do at this point. You don't know it, but I've bought you some time already, but even I've got to admit the team has got some valid concerns."

"Concerns that you share?"

Bill shrugged. "Some of them," he admitted.

"What about the two of us?" I asked. It was the first time I had acknowledged the strained relationship Bill and I had shared resulting from the events of the beginning of the year out loud to anyone. Truth was, I had been trying not to even admit it to myself but I couldn't deny its presence. I also couldn't deny that it wasn't going to go away without the two of us talking things out.

"Charlie, you're my brother. I'm going to be there for you no matter what. We're not going to always see eye-to-eye and yes, I''ve been angry about some of the things you've done and I might not like your choices, but I'm always going to love you."

"That's good to know, because I think I've certainly been giving you reason not to feel that way."

Bill didn't respond and the two of us stared at each other across the table in silence. It was Rob who finally broke the silence.

"I think that's my cue to leave," Rob said, as he got to his feet. "The two of you clearly have some things to talk out between yourselves. I'll see you both later."

With that said, Rob slung the strap of his bag over his shoulder and headed for the entrance. As his footsteps faded away, I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Look, Bill. I'm sorry. You were right about me getting wrapped up in Quidditch and shirking other responsibilities. I shouldn't have done it and by doing so, I've hurt other people. I can see that now. I guess sometimes I get so wrapped up in the game that it's all I see."

"That's for sure."

"You're not going to make this easy on me are you?"

"No, and why should I? You're not some kid anymore Charlie and you've been giving two positions at this school that you should be taking seriously equally."

"Equally? Do you really mean that?"

Across the table, Bill's neutral expression finally changed as a small smile crept across his face. "Quidditch Team Captain is no small feat, Charlie. It's one thing I could never accomplish. According to some, the only reason I'm even still on the team is because I'm your brother."

"You're a decent beater, Bill"

"You're right. I'm okay at the game but I'm not great like you and I'm fine with that. I shine in other areas. However, as good as you are at the game, that shouldn't be the only thing that defines you. You're bright Charlie. You've got a natural ability with animals - magical or not, and you're popular because you're a kindhearted person who tries to find the good in people. This year though, you've concentrated so much on the Quidditch team, and have become so obsessed with winning, that those other qualities are getting buried to your own detriment."

What else could I do? I nodded in assent. As much as I disliked being lectured by my older brother, I knew he was right.

"I almost didn't play Quidditch this year, Charlie, because I felt I needed to put my time and effort into other things. However, one thing made me decide to stick with it. Do you know what that was?"

"No."

"Loyalty - to you. You're my brother and I knew you were counting on me this year so I figured I could find the time to play, though here lately I'm having my doubts with as time consuming as it's becoming."

"I know. I'm sorry. My own class work is suffering because of it."

Bill waved his hand. "When it comes down to it, letting the game interfere with my classes is on me. It's not like Quidditch is mandatory. Other than kick me off the team, there isn't much you could do if I chose to skip practices. The fact that no one has should tell you something Charlie. Every member of the team is dedicated to the team, at least we were. That's not where I was going with this though. The point I was trying to make is that you mean more to me than the game or my schoolwork, or just about anything else at this school. You're my brother, and just like I've been trying my best to look out for and be there for Percy, the same thing goes for you. That's what got me so angry at the beginning of the school year, Charlie. Nothing should come before family - not a class and definitely not a game."

"I know that, Bill. I screwed up. I should've been looking out for, Percy more. I won't make that mistake again. What can I say to convince you of that?"

"I'm not sure there is anything you can say," Bill said.

I looked down at the table top. Those words told me just how disappointed my older brother was in me.

"That doesn't mean your actions can't prove your sincerity. I'm not blind. I know you've been going out of your way to shadow Percy to his classes without him knowing, since Dad was here. I know you care about Percy, Charlie. I just think you lost sight of that in worrying about putting together a winning team."

"I won't let that happen again."

"Good," Bill replied, "and as far as I'm concerned everything that has happened is water under the bridge. For what it's worth, you'll have my support with the team."

"That means a lot, Bill," I told him, glad to have things back to being okay between Bill and myself. At least something seemed to be going right. "About Percy, apparently Jason and Sky are still giving him a hard time."

Bill nodded. "I figured as much. Unfortunately there isn't much can be done unless they actually doing something in front of the teachers or one of us. I've thought about talking to them but . . ."

"Don't! Percy said he didn't want us to because he's worried about it only making things worse."

"A valid concern and what has held me back so far. Still, at least he seems to be settling in a bit and he doesn't seem as miserable as he did at the beginning of the year."

Bill and I continued our conversation a bit longer and then we left the Great Hall, each going our separate ways. Bill wanted to work on some class work and I wanted to spend some time trying to figure out what I could say to my team to convince them to give me a second chance. Somehow I didn't think it would be as easy as gaining my brother's support had been.


	19. Chapter 19

_Bill's POV:_

At ten minutes to two, Rob and I walked into the Transfiguration classroom. Jennifer was already in the room, sitting at one of the desks, a couple of books opened and head bent over a piece of parchment. She was concentrating so hard that she didn't look up as Rob and I walked across the room. The two of us leaned against the wall, beneath one of the windows along that side of the classroom.

The two of us waited in silence for the rest of the team to show up. Charlie was the next to do so, my younger brother taking up the position of leaning against the front of McGonagall's desk. He was looking down at the floor, his lips moving silently as if he was rehearsing something in his head and I had a feeling that I knew what that something was.

Trent and Trudy came in next, the two fourth years sticking together like they had been the entire year. Being younger than the rest of us, I often got the feeling they were nervous about fitting in with the rest of us though we all tried to make them feel welcomed. I also think that Derek had taken advantage of that and was part of the reason they were so willing to defect against Charlie. Of all my teammates, those were the two I was least sure about their reaction.

Derek I knew would be close to impossible to sway. He wasn't going to change his mind about Charlie and the best we could hope for was to persuade him to follow the majority. Rob had already told me that as long as Charlie agreed to be more reasonable with the plays we practice and the amount of time we put into practices, he had no problem with my younger brother. The two of us had decided that given the fact that I was Charlie's brother that he would do the talking today, figuring the others would chalk my support up as biased. Jennifer had seemed torn between the two sides this whole time, but she had shown support for Charlie before the match yesterday. I got the feeling that she was at least open to hearing my younger brother out.

Two o'clock came, without any sign of Derek. At her desk, Jennifer still worked away, apparently not aware of the time. I still wasn't sure if she had realized the rest of us had come into the room as I hadn't seen her glance up from the parchment. The rest of us were checking watches and glancing toward the door.

Ten minutes past two, I decided we had all waited long enough.

"Charlie, why don't you just start without Derek. We'll fill him in on anything he misses," I suggested, having a feeling that Derek was late on purpose.

At the sound of my voice, Jennifer finally looked up from the parchment she had been writing on. Glancing around the room, she seemed to take in the rest of us for the first time. As Charlie nodded, Jennifer closed the books she had opened and settled back in her chair, her attention now focused on my brother.

Charlie cast one final glance at the door and then let his gaze drift slowly across the room. "I know everyone on this team is about ready to either quit or wants a new captain, and in a way I can't say I blame any of you. I wanted to put together a team that had a chance of winning this year, and I think that I accomplished that except that somewhere along the way, I lost sight of the fact that we should be having fun along with winning. Winning became the only thing I could focus on and I was willing to do anything to achieve that."

"Like come up with a play book that looks like it was put together by a lunatic," Trent muttered from his seat across the room from me.

"I deserve that," Charlie conceded. "I went overboard with the play book and with making practices too long. I also messed up during the game yesterday. I was so worried about the idea of not having a team after the match that I forgot to do the one thing I always stress during practices - I didn't focus. Not on what I should have been doing and not on how the rest of you were playing. In short, I failed in my job as a captain and I'm sorry."

The door to the classroom opened and Derek finally strolled in. Without a single word he strolled past the desks that Trudy and Trent were sitting in and took a seat midway back. Choosing not to acknowledge our Keeper's late entrance Charlie continued.

"I wanted this team to be successful this year. To continue the excellence that the Gryffindor team's having been showing the past few years. A team however is only as strong as its weakest link and this team's weakest link is me. I realize that now so I guess maybe getting hit by those Bludgers yesterday knocked some sense into me."

Despite how concerned I had been for my brother after yesterday's match, I felt a small smile come to my face. Trent, Trudy, and Jennifer all had similar smiles on their faces at Charlie's words. From his spot, I heard Derek mutter something but couldn't make out what he said. No one else in the room did either, or if they did they all chose to ignore it.

"So, I just wanted a chance to apologize to all of you for letting the team down. I don't blame any of you for wanting to quit and I'm not entirely sure what made you all decide to go out there yesterday and play but I'm sorry I let you all down then too. I might not deserve a second chance, but I'm asking for one anyway. I still believe this team can win matches but I also realize now that we need to enjoy the game even if that doesn't happen. So, if you can all find it in yourselves to give me a second chance, I promise things will change. I'll get rid of the play book, shorten practices and not be such a tyrant. However, if you decide not to give me another chance, I'll understand the decision to and will step down without a fuss. The decision is yours."

With that said, Charlie left his spot in front of McGonagall's desk and headed for the door without giving anyone a chance to say anything. The room was silent in the wake of my brother's abrupt departure. It was Derek who finally broke it.

"Well, I say good riddance. Let's let him step down and then get a real Captain for this team."

"Who? You?" Rob asked from beside me.

"I'd still be quitting," Trent said from his seat.

Derek glared at the fourth-year.

"Now hold-up, didn't we say this was what we wanted," Jennifer said speaking up. "We wanted things to change - for practices not to be so long and to get rid of the ridiculous play book. Now, I wasn't on the team last year but as far as I could tell he did a good job last year. After all, Gryffindor won the Quidditch cup and I didn't hear any complaints from the team about him."

"He also wasn't out of control," Rob said from beside me. I glanced over at him and met his gaze. "I'm sorry, Bill but he has been lately and he all but admitted it just now. Maybe it's the pressure getting to him, but Charlie has been so obsessed with winning that he's turned a game that I use to enjoy playing into something I dread to do."

"I can't argue with that but at the same time, I don't think anyone else could do as good a job at leading this team as Charlie showed he could last year. I think if nothing else his past performance and dedication to this team the last four years should earn him a second chance."

"You would say that. You're his brother," Derek shot back.

"I'm also a member of this team, Derek, and as this is a team meeting I do believe I've got a right to state my opinion."

"Anyone who knows him, knows that Charlie has always been a bit obsessed with the game. I mean he was working on putting this team together our first day back long before any of the other houses were even thinking about scheduling tryouts. If that doesn't show dedication, then I don't know what does," Jennifer countered.

"I had fun at the beginning of this season, and I learned a lot," Trudy said almost timidly from her desk. As she continued, I shot a glance back at Derek to make sure he wasn't going to say something nasty to her. "I think Charlie did a good job until he started turning into a drill sergeant and sucking the fun out of the game. Back before we were spending so much time at practice that I had no free time because what time during the evenings wasn't spent out on the pitch was spent doing class work."

"I've already been told by Professor McGonagall that if I fail one more assignment in any of my classes that I'm off the team," Trent admitted.

"I think we're all struggling with our classes right now due to the intense practices," Rob told him.

The talk continued between Rob, Trent, Trudy and Jennifer. I chose to stay out of it for the most part, especially after Derek's comment. I wasn't sure how much my other teammate's shared that sentiment.

As for Derek, he started out fairly vocal. It was clear he was trying to keep Trent and Trudy on his side. As the conversation continued though, he got quieter realizing that he was losing his audience. I knew what Derek's problem was. It was the same problem he had with Charlie the year before. He didn't like the fact that Charlie had been named captain, a position that Derek had his eye on ever since we had stepped foot at Hogwarts. For him, this was his last chance on getting the title that every male Finigan to pass through these walls had managed to achieve for the last four generations.

As the conversation started to repeat itself, Rob held up his hands and called for quiet.

"We're starting to repeat ourselves here. It seems like everyone wants to keep this team together," Rob said, looking around at everyone in the room for confirmation. He was greeted with nods from all around, even a begrudging one from Derek. "Then the question is, do we give Charlie a second chance or not? Now Charlie is right, we still do stand a chance at winning our matches maybe even the cup still, but not if we change captains at this point in the season. The whole team dynamics will change and not necessarily for the good."

"I can't keep up with the practices," Trent said. "Five days a week for two or three hours is getting to be too much. None of the other teams are practicing that much."

"Even I'm not arguing that point, Trent," I said from my spot next to Rob. "Changes need to be made the question is, are we going to make those changes in our practice schedule or in the team dynamics."

"I think we've discussed the situation long enough," Rob said. "Let's take a vote. Everyone who's for keeping Charlie as our captain with the stipulation that he's willing to make concessions on how practices are ran, raise you hand."

Rob and I immediately raised our hands. Jennifer wasn't far behind us in raising her hand in the air. After a brief look at one another, Trent and Trudy also hesitantly raised their hands in the air. That left only one hold out and all eyes in the room turned to Derek.

"What's it going to be, Finigan?" Rob asked.

Derek glanced at each person in the room before settling his gaze on Rob and me. "I think leaving Charlie as our captain is a mistake, but as this is a team decision I will yield to the majority. When things go back to exactly how they are right now, don't say I didn't warn you."

"Fair enough," Rob said, as he left his spot next to me and started walking across the classroom. "I have a feeling Charlie didn't get to far which means as we're all here, we can get things settled before any of us leave."

Rob reached the classroom door and opening it, looked into the hallway. Charlie must have been waiting outside because Rob was gesturing to someone and moments later my younger brother walked into the room.

"So what's the verdict?" Charlie asked as Rob closed the door behind them.

My teammates all looked at me. Apparently, they had all silently elected me to break the news to Charlie.

"We've all decided to give you a second chance," I told him, immediately seeing the tension drain from Charlie's body. "However, changes need to be made. None of us can afford to put in the hours of practice that we have been or McGonagall is going to be grounding the entire team for academic reasons. We decide on a practice schedule and adhere to it."

"Fine."

"Also, that play book from Hell has got to go. None of us are good enough to pull off some of those plays nor can we even understand some of them, Charlie. This is a school team not Puddlemere United."

"I don't even think Puddlemere could pull off some of those plays," Trent muttered.

"Done," Charlie said quickly. "I promise you all - this is going to be fun again."

"Does that mean no more practicing in the rain?" Jennifer asked, the corners of her mouth turning up slightly as she tried to keep a straight face."

"Don't push your luck," Charlie told her lightly, sending a ripple of soft laughter through the room that seemed to clear the tension in the room. "So, let's settle on a practice schedule right now. First, I propose we all take the week off from practice to catch up on schoolwork and just take it easy."

"I'll second that," Trudy said, sounding quite relieved.

"Professor McGonagall probably would too." I commented lightly.

"When we do start practices again, this is the schedule I propose. We practice Monday and Wednesday for an hour and Fridays for an hour and a half. All in favor raise your hands."

At first nobody moved. If the others were feeling like I did, it was surprise that kept us from reacting. It was the first time this year Charlie had allowed us to vote on anything concerning the team. Getting over my surprise, I raised my hand. Three practices a week would be much more manageable than the current five. One by one, my other teammates raised their hands.

"And the practices aren't going to run past their appointed time?" Jennifer asked.

"Well, I think you all know how wrapped up I can get in the game by now, so I can't honestly promise not to run over, however if I do lose track of time, someone send a Bludger in my direction. Bill seems to be pretty good at that."

"I was not aiming for you yesterday," I said, holding my hands up in protest.

"Well, at least we got an honest answer out of him," Jennifer said. "I can live with that."

"Anyone else have anything to say?" Charlie asked. He looked around the room at everyone. When no one replied he continued. "Okay, then I'll see you all down at the locker rooms at four sharp a week from tomorrow."


	20. Chapter 20

_**Percy's POV:**_

Wednesday evening found me in the library with Oliver and Emily. While Emily was currently doing research for the essay for our Magical Theory class which was due the following week, Oliver and I were working on an essay for Snape's class which was due the next day. It was an extra credit assignment, one which Emily had elected not to complete, saying that she needed to concentrate more on her other classes seeing that her grades on our potions assignments, quizzes, test, and class exercises were adequate.

As for me, I didn't really need the extra credit either, however it was a learning opportunity. As the extra credit assignment focused on potions not normally included in our class, I had decided to do it just to learn about something new. As for Oliver, despite a high score on our class exercises due to us being partners and the help I had been giving him on our homework, his grade could definitely use the boost, especially after our practical quiz yesterday. Oliver had made the mistake of not removing his cauldron from the heat before adding the porcupine quills to the boil cure potion. As a result, Oliver needed a new cauldron and me and a couple of others near him had to write home to request new shoes from our parents. Until then, we would be walking around with holes in our shoes. How Oliver had managed to keep the bubbling concoction away from his shoes I hadn't a clue.

None of my classes were going too bad. Though I wasn't on top of Herbology or Astronomy, I also wasn't doing too badly in them. They just didn't seem to come as easy most of the other classes, though the worse by far was still flying. At least I could manage to stay on the broom now though, which meant there weren't quite as many people laughing at me.

Suddenly, the parchment I was writing on was snatched away.

"So, Weasel what are you working on," came Marcus voice from behind me. Across the table from me Oliver was on his feet.

"Give him the parchment back, Marcus."

"You'll have to make me," the Slytherin taunted. "We both know Weasel here won't, will you weasel?" Marcus added as he nudged the back of my head with what felt like his elbow.

"I've got no problem doing just that," Oliver told him, as he started to move around the table.

He didn't get too far as Madam Pince, the librarian, quickly made her way over to us.

"Boys you are being way too noisy for the library. You're disrupting the other students," she scolded.

Glancing around I could see that she was right. The other students in the library had stopped their own work and were looking at us.

"Sorry, Madam Pince," Oliver said quickly, though as I watched him I saw that his eyes never left Marcus who was still standing behind me.

"I'm taking five points from both Slytherin and Gryffindor and I suggest you either go back to your work or leave the library."

Madam Pince stood there waiting for some reaction from Oliver and Marcus. Oliver sat back down in the seat across from me.

"I promise to keep my voice down, Madam Pince," Marcus said in such a fake tone of voice that I felt sure Madam Pince wouldn't fall for it.

Somehow, he got away with it though. "Very well. I let you students get back to your work," Madam Pince said, before walking away from our table.

"Give him his essay back, Marcus," Oliver said in a low growl when we were alone again.

Marcus didn't even acknowledge Oliver's demand.

"What are you trying to do, Weasel," Marcus said instead. "Earn brownie points with Professor Snape. Sucking up to him is about the only way you can pass his class."

"I don't suck up to him. I just do the work. Can I help it if you're so bad at potions that even being a Slytherin isn't going to help you pass?" I said, the words slipping out without me really thinking about it. Even as I said them, I couldn't believe they were really coming out of my mouth.

I heard Emily give a little gasp beside me. Apparently the words had surprised her as well.

I heard the ripping sound of the parchment behind me. The fact that I had been just about done with the essay that he had just ripped increased my anger. I was really starting to get tired of Marcus harassment as well as dealing with Jason and Sky. The fact that I could probably repair the parchment didn't matter to me, especially as redoing the assignment would be easy enough as I still had the books. What I wanted to do was scare Marcus so that he might finally leave me alone.

Turning in my chair, I pulled my wand out of the pocket of my robes. "Incendio," I said softly, creating flames from the end of my wand.

The flames leaped out onto one half of the parchment. Consuming the parchment, they spread. Beside me Emily screamed and moved from her seat. Marcus quickly dropped the now burning parchment, allowing both pieces to float to the floor, their movement causing them to drift in Emily's direction. As it settled on the ground, the flames reached out and caught the edge of Emily's robes. By this time, we had once again attracted the attention of the others in the library and running footsteps probably meant Madam Pince was hurrying this direction.

Trying to recall some spell or charm that had to do with water that I had seen in one of my brother's school books, only one spell came to mind. I couldn't remember exactly what it did but I remembered it had something to do with rain.

"Pluvialio," I said, and suddenly it was raining in the library.

More shrieks filled the air and I heard more running footsteps. Looking around, all I saw was chaos.

"What is going on here?" Madam Pince shouted as she ran in our direction.

I couldn't find the words to answer her. I heard Oliver's voice as he attempted to explain, but I didn't concentrate on it. All I heard was the chaos around me. I sank to my knees, my wand still gripped in my hand, the rain falling down around me.

"Protego," I whispered softly, stopping the raindrops from hitting me, even as I hid my face in my hands. If only blocking out the sound was as easy.

Through the chaos I heard the sound of Professor McGonagall's voice. "Meteolojinx Recanto."

_**Charlie's POV:**_

It seemed weird to not have Quidditch practice, even though it was day three of our week break. Rumors were flying around the school, ranging from the fact that McGonagall had disbanded our team to the speculation that I was no longer captain as the team had voted me out. It was kind of scary how close some of those stories were. I knew that the Gryffindor team's break in practices only fueled those rumors, but I also knew that it was necessary. I had pushed too hard leading up to this match, and like myself, my teammates were feeling the effects of that. As for trying to stop the rumors, I knew there was no chance in accomplishing that. The best thing to do was to let people talk until they got bored or found something else to whisper about.

Quidditch practice or not though, I was still walking into the entrance hall of the castle in my Quidditch robes. Figuring I had taken it 'easy' long enough, I had decided to spend some time flying around the pitch. Part of me had to make sure I could still do it. Though I haven't admitted it to anyone, the two falls I had taken Saturday had scared me.

All those doubts were now behind me though. It had taken a bit to feel comfortable on the broom, but after a few tentative laps around the pitch, I had been back at home on my broomstick. Making sure there had been no spectators, I had soon been practices some dives and plays imagined in my own head. I felt recharged and ready for our next practice on Monday.

I was headed toward Gryffindor Tower when a couple of Hufflepuffs came running past me.

"Hey, stop!" I called out to them. The two students, who looked to be either second or third years, slowed to a stop at the sound of my shout. As they turned to face me, I noticed they were soaking wet. "You know there is no running in the corridors," I told them.

"Sorry," one of the girls replied, her robes dripping water onto the floor.

"We were just trying to escape the library. It's raining in there," her companion said.

~_Raining in the library_, ~ I thought, wondering what was going on. If it wasn't for their wet robes, I might not have believed them.

"You still shouldn't be running in the corridors," I told them. "Slow down and I'm taking five points from Hufflepuff for each of you."

As the two Hufflepuffs continued in the direction they had been headed before I had stopped them, I changed my own path and started for the library. I wasn't sure what was going on but I had an eerie feeling that I couldn't explain.

The fact that something was going on was obvious before I even reached the library. The corridor outside of the room was packed with students, some just as wet as the two Hufflepuffs I had crossed paths with. Weaving my way through the crowd, using my Prefect title more than once to get past people, I slowly made my way to the entrance of the library.

Standing in the arched doorway, I took in the scene. Though there was no rain falling in the room, there was evidence, besides the soaked people outside of the room, that it had been. Everything within the room was wet. Books, bags and pieces of parchment lay abandoned on tables. Other books had been dropped on the floor among the shelves, presumably left behind as whoever had been glancing through them had fled. Even most of the room's remaining occupants were wet, the exception being Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore. Both teachers stood by one of the tables, eyes focused on a figure kneeling on the ground their face hidden by their hands. The red hair of the person though told me exactly who it was, as did the other remaining student in the room - Oliver Wood.

Stepping into the library, being careful not to slip on the still wet floor, I made my way in the direction of the small group. Madam Pince and several of the other library aides also stood by watching the scene. As I got closer, I could hear both Dumbledore and McGonagall talking to Percy, though neither made a move any closer to my younger brother.

Hearing my footsteps, everyone besides my brother looked in my direction.

"Charlie, good maybe your brother will listen to you," Professor McGonagall said, beckoning me closer.

"What's going on?" I asked, my gaze drifting from McGonagall to my brother kneeling on the ground. He didn't look hurt but I was still confused as to why everyone was keeping their distance.

"Apparently, another student was giving Percy a hard time. He retaliated using some spells, one of which caused it to rain in the library."

"Where did he learn that one?" I asked, remembering learning about weather charms and spells last only last year.

"I don't know," McGonagall replied.

"Nor is it important at this point," Dumbledore said, speaking up. The headmaster's gaze was now focused on me too. "What is important is that Percy has put up a shield charm around himself and won't acknowledge or let anyone near him. Perhaps, he'll listen to you."

I looked away from the two teachers and down at my brother. Though his face was hidden, he appeared to be crying from the slight shaking of his shoulders. I had a feeling that Percy was just as frightened by what had happened here as some of the other students had been.

"Hey, Percy, everything is okay," I said, trying to my best to sound reassuring even as I silently wished that Bill was here to deal with this. "Things are under control now and everyone here just wants to be sure you're okay."

There was no sign from Percy that he had even heard my words. What I wanted to do was kneel down beside him and gather him in my arms but the shield charm prevented that. I settled for squatting down in front of him, the shield charm separating the two of us.

"Percy, I want you to look at me," I said, wishing that I had mastered the big brother lecture tone that Bill seemed to have mastered. I know I for one gave my older brother my undivided attention when I heard that tone, and from what I've seen my younger brothers did too.

Percy slowly raised his head. I saw fear on his face. He held my gaze briefly before he looked around the room, taking in the scene around him. I saw panic slowly replacing the fear.

"I didn't mean to . . . I just wanted to scare Marcus a bit so he would leave me alone. I never wanted to hurt anyone."

"I know that, Percy," I said trying to sound reassuring.

"I didn't think . . . I didn't realize . . ."

"I know the results of spells can take us by surprise sometimes, kiddo," I told him. "Especially when we don't understand them"

"I didn't mean to hurt anyone," he repeated, his eyes still taking in the disorder that the library was currently in.

"Perce, look at me," I instructed him, waiting for my younger brother to comply. Once I knew I had his attention, I continued. "You didn't hurt anyone. Everyone is fine and this mess, can be cleaned up. It'll take some time but Madam Pince and her staff will set in right. It's going to be okay, kiddo. Now come on, let the shield down."

"I . . . I don't know how."

"Just clear your mind, son," Dumbledore said softly from behind me. "Stop concentrating on the shield and it'll dissolve."

Percy looked down at the floor in front of him, without giving any indication that he had heard the headmaster's instructions. A few seconds later though there was a brief flash of light as the almost invisible barrier disappeared. I quickly moved forward and wrapped my arms around my little brother.

"It's going to be okay," I told him, as Percy clung tightly to me.

"Professor McGonagall, why don't you escort Mr. Weasley and Mr. Wood to your office. I'll join you shortly so we can get all this straightened out," Dumbledore said.

"Yes, Headmaster," McGonagall replied.

As our head of our house ushered the three of us toward the door, which was still crowded with onlookers, I heard Dumbledore address another teacher whom I hadn't realized had arrived on the scene.

"Professor Snape, I do believe we are going to need to talk to Mr. Flint about his involvement in this . . ."

The Headmaster's words faded away as McGonagall led Percy, Oliver and myself through the gathered crowd. As we wove our way through the gathered crowd, I caught pieces of the whispers of my peers. With the arm I had around my brother's shoulders, I tightened my hold on him, more to show support than worried that he would try to run off. I had a feeling that the rumors about the Gryffindor Quidditch team were about to come to an end.


	21. Chapter 21

_**Oliver's POV:**_

I sat nervously in a chair in the small waiting area outside of Professor McGonagall's office. Our head of house and Professor Dumbledore were within the office now talking to Percy. Charlie had gone in with his younger brother which left me alone with nothing to do but wait and worry.

I wasn't really worried about myself. Other than getting in trouble for disrupting the quietness of the library during my brief altercation with Marcus that Madam Pince had already addressed, I hadn't done anything. No, my concern was for my friend. Just how much trouble was Percy going to get into over this? Would McGonagall and Dumbledore decide to expel him from school for making it rain in the library? Not to mention, just how did Percy manage to conjure those spells? We hadn't learned any of the three he had used yet. I thought about the wind blowing the torches out back at the beginning of the school year. What I had seen my friend do so far was starting to scare me.

The sound of footsteps made me look up. I saw Emily walk into the waiting area followed closely by Marcus Flint and Professor Snape. The potions master had a hold of Flint's collar as my classmate walked reluctantly in the room. As Emily took a seat next to me, Snape deposited Flint in the first empty chair. Flint immediately crossed his arms and slumped in the chair, clearly having no desire to be here.

I glanced over at Emily, whose face showed many of the same things I was feeling myself. I reached out and took her hand, uneasy about saying anything with Professor Snape present.

The silence in the room felt awkward. I could hear the breathing of everyone in the room and concentrated on it instead of letting my mind wander through all the possible scenarios that could result from what had just happened. I wasn't sure how much time had passed when I heard another set of hurried footsteps approaching. Looking to the doorway, I saw Bill Weasley come quickly around the corner and then come to a quick stop when he noticed Professor Snape.

"Mr. Weasley," Snape said easily.

"Hello, Professor," Bill said, before dropping his voice as he continued to address our potions teacher.

Even without hearing the conversation, I had a feeling I knew what the conversation was about - that Bill was trying to find out exactly what had happened instead of the stories he had heard. The fact that he had showed up told me that he had heard something.

The sound of the office door opening drew my attention away from Bill and Snape. Charlie and Percy walked out of the office, my friend looking down on the ground. The two of them took seats in two empty chairs.

"Mr. Wood, we would like to speak to you next."

McGonagall's voice drew my attention away from Percy and his brother. A feeling of trepidation washed over me as I got to my feet and slowly walked toward the professor who stood in the doorway of the office. Part of me wished that Rob was here with me.

Almost an hour later we were all finally leaving Professor McGonagall's office. I almost felt sorry for Flint as he headed toward the dungeons with Snape. The only thing keeping me from feeling bad for him was the fact that it had been Flint who had started this entire mess.

"The three of you head straight for the Great Hall. Dinner is already underway," Bill instructed us.

"But we've still got things in the library," Emily said, "though everything is probably completely ruined."

"You'd be surprised at what a little magic can fix," Bill told her. "Charlie and I will go to the library and gather your things."

Without another word, my fellow first years and I headed in the direction of the Great Hall.

"So, how much trouble did you get into?" I asked Percy as we walked down the corridor. Other than a short lecture from McGonagall about the importance of following rules and not disturbing others while in the library I hadn't received any punishment.

"I've got to serve two detentions with Madam Pince for retaliating against Flint and I lost thirty points for Gryffindor. Most of my time in McGonagall's office was spent receiving a lecture from Professor Dumbledore about the importance of not trying spells that we haven't been properly trained to do."

"Well, all things considering, that's not too bad," Emily said, as she walked down the corridor behind me and Percy.

"Frankly, I'm surprised I wasn't expelled," Percy said.

"I thought you wanted out of here," I told him, trying to lighten the mood. I hadn't actually heard Percy say anything about wanting to go home in awhile and he had seemed more settled here lately. My words didn't have their intended effect though.

"As much as I wouldn't mind getting out of here, I'm starting to think I need to be here," Percy said quietly. "It's starting to scare me that I find things easy that people seem to think I shouldn't be able to do. Even McGonagall and Dumbledore seemed surprised when I told them I had simply read about those spells in one of Charlie's schoolbook and that no one had shown me how to do it."

"You just have a greater natural ability for magic than most people do," Emily said. "Just like there are some kids born to a wizard and a witch that have no magical ability what-so-ever, or a child born to two parents without any magical tendency, there are some wizards and witches that show a stronger magical ability than others. Professor Dumbledore is thought to be one of the most powerful wizards of our day."

"So was You-Know-Who," I added quietly.

"Somehow that thought doesn't comfort me."

"Sorry, Perce," I said, resting a hand on his shoulder. "Look at it this way though mate, you've finally done something that neither of your brothers has done yet. You made it rain in the library!"

"Somehow I don't think my parents are going to be too happy about that accomplishment," Percy replied, though I did see a small smile come to his face.

The three of us continued to the Great Hall in silence. As Bill had said, dinner was already underway and most of our classmates were already within the hall. The Gryffindor table was almost full, but I saw the normal spaces that we occupied empty. As Emily made her way between the aisle between the Gryffindor and Slytherin tables, Percy and I started down the other aisle.

I noticed students at both the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables fell silent as we approached. Their attention was focused on Percy who was ahead of me. Reaching out, I placed my hand on his shoulder, letting him know that he wasn't facing this alone.

We reached the empty seats without incident. As we our places at the table across from Emily and Ellen, the talk around us continued back up again.

"Great, I'm going to be the talk of school again," Percy said, as we started filling our plates.

"You made it rain in the library, Perce. What do you expect?" I asked, unable to keep the amusement I was feeling out of my voice.

"So it's true then?" Ellen asked, looking around at all three of us.

"Yes. I definitely could have done without my robes catching on fire though," Emily replied.

"I told you I was sorry about that. I didn't intend for that to happen," Percy told her.

"I know you didn't," Emily replied.

"I miss all the cool stuff," Ellen said, as she rested her elbow on the table and propped her head up on one hand. "I bet this goes down as a school legend. Something that will be remembered even after we've graduated."

"With any luck my name won't be remembered with it. Somehow I don't think the Ministry will look to highly on the fact that I destroyed school property with a rain storm."

"You heard Professor McGonagall. Most of the books should be able to be restored from the water damage."

"I sure hope so."

Deciding that steering the conversation away from the current subject I steered the conversation to our classes. We were in a discussion of the quiz we had taken in our Charms class earlier that day when Bill and Rob appeared behind Emily our things from the library in their hands.

"There you are," Bill said, as he and my brother handed our belongings to us. "Everything has been dried out and restored. I couldn't find any trace of whatever was left of your essay though Perce. Someone must have thrown the parchment away before I got there."

"I guess I'll have to just rewrite," Percy said. "If they let me back in the library."

"Well, you don't have to find out tonight," Charlie said, placing two more books on the table in front of his younger brother. "Those were still on the table you were sitting at so I figured they were what you were working from."

"Thanks, Charlie."

"Just don't make it rain in here, Kiddo," Charlie told him, reaching across the table and ruffling Percy's already unruly hair after having air dried from being wet and not being combed. "I want to eat my food without it getting soggy."

I stifled the laugh, able to put myself in Percy's shoes. I know what it was like to get teased by an older brother.

The older two Weasleys left to join their own friends, leaving my classmates and I to go back to the conversation they had interrupted.

_**Percy's POV:**_

"Come on, Perce. Being late isn't going to make things any better," Oliver called out over his shoulder as he hurried down the steps toward Snape's classroom.

"Don't be so sure about that," I said, not sure if it was loud enough for Oliver to hear and not really caring either.

The corridors were empty, those who had found their way down to this area of the castle having already reached their destination. I had been dragging my feet going places all day, in an attempt to keep away from people. As many students as there were at Hogwarts though, I hadn't been very successful.

I noticed Oliver had paused at the bottom of the steps to wait for me to catch up. Not wanting to get him in trouble I quickened my pace. Though most of our classmates were in the room as I entered, we weren't late, nor had Snape come into the room.

I walked to the front of the room trying to ignore the whispers that I felt were about me. Reaching the front row, I noticed something had been placed at my seat. Sliding past Oliver to my seat, I saw that it was a green and black umbrella which told me exactly who had put it there. I heard snickers around me as I sank down into my chair.

Beside me, Oliver snatched the umbrella and marched over to where Marcus sat, a smug look on his face.

"I believe you lost something, Flint."

"I don't believe I'm going to need it. I don't hang out with the walking rain shower."

"I was thinking more like you could hold it up in the next thunderstorm and perhaps some lighting would zap some decency into you," Oliver told him, as he dropped the umbrella onto Flint's desk.

There were several snickers from the other students, even on the Slytherin side of the room.

"You think you're clever, don't you Wood?"

"Clever enough to deal with the likes of you."

The sound of Marcus' chair scraping against the stone floor echoed throughout the dungeon classroom. Oliver didn't so much as flinch as Flint got to his feet, glaring at my friend. Before anything else could be said, another cold monotone voice spoke up.

"Is there a problem here gentlemen?"

All eyes turned to the back of the classroom, where Professor Snape had just stepped into the classroom.

"No, Professor," Oliver replied, his eyes still focused on Marcus. "Just returning something."

"Then perhaps you would like to return to your seat, Mr. Wood."

Oliver backed away from Marcus, not turning his back on the Slytherin until he had put some distance between them. Snape strode to the front of the classroom.

"Have you not looked out a window today, Mr. Flint? There isn't a cloud in sight so why don't you put that umbrella somewhere out of the way so we can work on potions today."

"Yes, Professor," Flint said, finally sitting down in his seat.

I turned my gaze to the front of the classroom, and didn't see what Marcus did with the umbrella. I focused on Professor Snape as he explained our class assignment to us. It wasn't long before we had our books open and were working on our latest potion. As we started sorting and cutting out our ingredients, Professor Snape walked through the classroom collecting our extra-credit essays. As I had stayed up late rewriting the one that had gotten damaged and then disappeared, I had one to turn in. After collecting them, Snape returned to his desk and proceeded to start grading them. Every so often I would cast my gaze in his direction and see his Quill working quickly. Apparently he wasn't going any easier on the grading of the extra-credit assignments than he did our regular assignments.

I was about to add Timberdust to the potion when Snape spoke up.

"Mr. Weasley, can I see you at my desk please."

"Yes, Professor," I replied, handing the vial containing the Timberdust to Oliver as I got to my feet.

I squeezed past his chair and made my way up to Snape's desk. Not sure what was going on, I didn't say anything as I stood in front of his desk and clasped my hands behind my back. Standing as straight as I could, I looked across the desk at him, struggling not to look down at the desk between us.

"Mr. Weasley, did you write your extra-credit essay on your own?"

"Yes, Professor."

"Did you perhaps discuss it with anyone in your house?"

"No, Professor."

"Then how do you explain this, Mr. Weasley."

Professor Snape placed two pieces of parchment down on his desk side by side. I recognized the one immediately as the essay I had turned in. I had to look at the name on the other parchment to see whose it was. In the top corner of the parchment I saw Jason's name scrawled. As I scanned his essay, it started to seem familiar and then I realized why - for the most part it was the first essay I had written in the library. Having based the second essay on what I wrote in the front, I knew the one I had turned in was similar to Jason's copied essay.

"As there are more than thirty uses for salamander blood in the field of potion making, and I asked for only four in the essay, I find it unlikely that two students would both randomly pick the same four. Add in the fact that they are discussed in the same order and for the most part impart the same information I do believe you can see my concern. So, I ask you again, can you explain this, Mr. Weasley."

"My first essay disappeared during the incident in the library last night," I said softly, still looking at the parchments on the desk.

"Just how did it disappear?"

I recounted to Snape the same events I had told Dumbledore and McGonagall the evening before but added the part about Bill and Charlie not being able to find the ruined essay.

"So, I rewrote the essay last night from what I could remember and using the library books."

"So, you believe Mr. Goyle took the ruined essay from the library and copied it."

"His essay is almost exactly like the first one I wrote," I said, realizing how lame those words seemed. I could already imagine an owl being sent to my parents informing them that I was caught cheating on a potions assignment and I wondered if they would believe me over Professor Snape.

"Well, Mr. Weasley, if you did the research like you claim you should be able to answer a few extra questions for me," Snape stated, reaching out and pulling the parchments toward him.

"I'll try, sir."

"How many other uses of salamander blood that you didn't mention in your essay can you name?"

I rattled off seven more uses that I remembered seeing being mentioned in the books I had been using for my research. Professor Snape asked me five more questions without letting me know if I had answered them correctly or not, though I was confident that I did.

"You many return to your seat, Mr. Weasley."

I nodded before turning to face the class. I saw heads duck as my classmates went back to acting like they were focused on the class assignment and not what was going on at the front of the class. I headed back toward my seat, wanting to really head right out the door at the back of the room.

"Mr. Goyle, I need to have a word with you," Snape called out.

"What was that about?" Oliver asked, as I sat down next to him.

"I'll tell you later," I told him. "Where are we?" I asked, wanting to immerse myself back into the process of potion making.

Whether I was imagining it or not, Jason seemed to be at Snape's desk for a shorter amount of time than I had been. However, when he past me on the way back to his desk, I could tell he was not happy even before the 'teacher's pet' comment that was directed toward me.

"That will be another five points from Gryffindor, Mr. Goyle," Snape called out.

I relaxed a little. Apparently Jason had gotten in some kind of trouble for the identical essays. As Snape said nothing else to me, I hoped that meant that the incident was over and done with. At least as far as our potions professor was concerned.


	22. Chapter 22

_**Charlie's POV:**_

I had never felt so nervous as I did right now, as I walked down toward the locker rooms outside of the pitch. It was the team's first practice since our week long break but I wasn't wearing my Quidditch robes nor did I have my broom with me. What I was carrying was the play book I had created earlier in the year. I wasn't sure how the team would react to what I had planned but I was determined to go through with it.

"Did you find out what Oliver is upset with Percy about?" I heard Bill ask as I entered the tent. As he was sitting on a bench next to Rob, both of them out of their school robes but haven't yet put on their Quidditch robes, I assumed the question was directed at them.

"Apparently, Oliver, Sheldon and another Ravenclaw were planning an excursion to the forbidden forest. Oliver convinced them to let Percy tag along again but instead of joining them, Percy went to McGonagall."

"Again?"

"That's what Oliver said. The only thing I can think of is that they've tried it before," Rob replied.

I felt a bit angry at hearing that there had been talk of another trip to the Forbidden Forest after the warning I had given to Oliver and Percy. At least my little brother had sense enough to listen to me.

Knowing that Bill would be angry at me for not telling him about the first incident, I kept my mouth shut and looked around the room. Derek was busy pulling his Quiddtich gear out of a locker. Jennifer had already donned her robes and had a school book opened on her lap as she sat on the bench. Trent and Trudy were not yet there. As there was still time before practice officially started I didn't mind.

Silently, I walked over to the locker I used which was next to Jennifer's. I sat down on the bench next to her. Taking her attention away from her school book, Jennifer glanced over at me.

"Is that the play book from hell?" She asked, waving a hand at the thick book that I now had resting in my lap.

"Yes."

"I thought it was decided that we get rid of that thing?"

"It was," I replied, glancing over at her. I could see the doubt creeping into her features. "Don't worry, I'll explain when everyone is here."

Jennifer accepted that statement with a nod of her head, before returning to her book. A few moments later, Trent and Trudy strolled in, backpacks dangling from one shoulder. As they spotted me sitting on the bench, I saw them both glance at their watches.

"You're not late," I told them, as I got to my feet. "Have a seat though, and we'll get started. We won't be going out to the pitch today."

"Oh, wonderful. What do you have planned, Weasley - team bonding exercises?" Derek asked his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"No, Finigan. Not that it would help in your case even if we did."

"Why you little . . ." Derek said, getting to his feet and heading toward me.

I stood up straight and reached into the pocket of my robes, my right hand closing around my wand. I wasn't sure how much of a match I would be against the seventh year but I wasn't about to back down and let him think I was scared of him. Doing that would only lose me more credibility as the team's captain.

"Enough!" Bill said, suddenly standing in between me and Derek. "We're a team and it's about time we started acting like one. We all voted last week to keep Charlie as our captain that means when it comes to Quidditch we listen to him," Bill said, looking around at each of the team, his eyes finally resting on Derek. "No one is forcing you to stay on this team. You're free to go but if you choose to stay, then you will show Charlie the proper respect. I'm not going to tolerate any fighting in here any more than I will tolerate it up in the castle. Do I make myself clear?"

I nodded, even though I was pretty sure that Bill's speech was directed mostly toward Derek. On the other side of Bill, Derek did likewise.

"Okay then," Bill said, turning and heading back to where he had been sitting with Rob. "So you were saying, Charlie?"

"Yeah, right. Like I was saying, we won't be going out on the pitch today. Instead, I think we need to spend the time working on a new play book."

"Hear, hear," Trent said softly. His words broke the tension in the room.

I picked up the one I had put together myself and lifted it in the air. "I know we said we would throw this out, but I don't think we should just discard the whole thing. I know there are some good plays in here that this team is more than capable of learning, some of which we already have learned. What I want to do during this practice is as a team go through this book and weed out the bad plays from the good ones."

Around me, my team members nodded in agreement. I dropped the book down on the ground and then sat down. One by one, the others came down and took seats next to me on the ground, the play book in the middle of the circle that we had formed.

"First step, let's take this thing apart," I said, starting to reach for the book.

"Wait, Charlie," Trent said, speaking up. I looked over at the fourth year that I still barely knew this far into the season. I made a mental note that I had to change that. "May I have the honors?" Trent asked, motioning to the book.

"Be my guess," I said, pushing the book across the floor toward him.

**Percy's POV:**

It was the first weekend in December, and a blanket of snow covered the ground as Oliver and I walked across the courtyard. End of term exams would be coming up in a couple of weeks and we had been practicing the Levitation Charm on snowballs

"Hey Oliver, look what I've got," Sheldon said in a low, conspiring tone as he fell into step with Oliver. Glancing over, I saw him showing my friend three boomerangs. "Ever-Bashing Boomerangs. I got one of the third years to sneak them back from Hogsmead for me when they went last weekend."

"Those are banned items," I said, keeping my tone low so as to not be overheard. Though there wasn't anyone near us, we were in the courtyard and someone could easily pass by.

"What are you going to do Weasley, turn me in?" Sheldon asked.

"I might," I said quietly, not able to look over at Oliver.

The last thing I wanted to do was get Oliver mad at me again. When I had turned him and Sheldon in when they had let me in on the second trip to the Forbidden Forest back in October. Given our lucky escape the time before I hadn't thought it was a good idea but neither one had really listened to me. I refused to go but they were still set on it. Seeing it as the only way of protecting them, I had gone to professor McGonagall. That had resulted in Oliver getting mad at me and not talking to me for a few days, which made Potions interesting. As Oliver was the only one I really talked to, those few days had been miserable, though at least my brothers had let me tag along with them in the evenings. Despite several apologies, Oliver had stayed mad at me until Jason had cornered me in the corridors in the dungeon with only a couple of Slytherins in sight. Apparently my perfect score on our Transfiguration exam that morning was not sitting well with Jason. I remember him saying something about if McGonagall didn't favor me so much that he would get better grades though at the time I was more concerned with the wand he was waving around wondering what kind of jinxes he might have learned. The thought of using the shield charm had crossed my mind briefly, but remembering the incident in the library I was reluctant to use any sort of magic outside of what I needed to for my classes.

Having heard the Slytherins talking when they had entered our Potions classroom, Oliver had come to my rescue. Since that incident, Oliver and I hadn't had any more problems though I noticed that he tended to hang out with Sheldon without me most of the time.

"Tattletale."

"I'm not a tattletale," I countered. "Someone could be hurt by one of those things if you let it go in the castle, that's why they're on the list of Forbidden Items."

"Weasley, you used to be fun."

"Okay, you two, stop it!" Oliver said putting his hands up. "If he puts the boomerangs away and doesn't bring them out around you again will you keep this between us?" he asked, looking over at me.

What could I do? If I didn't agree, I risked having no one to talk to again. I nodded my agreement.

"Good. Sheldon, please put the boomerangs away," Oliver said, looking in Sheldon's direction.

The Ravenclaw muttered something that I didn't catch, but he did put the boomerangs away. Somehow, I had a feeling I would be hearing stories of them having been set loose before the end of the weekend.

* * *

After grabbing lunch in the Great Hall, we joined the crowd heading down to the Quidditch pitch. Even the snow and cold weather couldn't keep students from the opposing teams housing from going to the match. As today's match was Gryffindor vs. Slytherin, I noticed that there were little yellow and blue amongst the crowd. Halfway to the pitch, a light snow began to fall. If it wasn't that both of my brother's were playing today, I would have turned around and headed back to the castle.

~_Emily and Ellen had the right idea_, ~ I thought, thinking of my two classmates who had chosen to go back to the Gryffindor common room and enjoy the peace and quiet while most of the house was at the match.

Reaching the pitch, I followed Oliver into stands. Our section and the Slytherin sections were packed. Over in the staff's section, I noticed only a handful of the staff had shown up - Professor McGonagall and Snape among them. There was only a handful of Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws in those sections, and from what I could see they seemed to be the older students.

"Hi Oliver!" came a singsong voice behind us. I didn't have to look behind me to know who was behind us.

Beside me, Oliver turned to greet the newcomer. "Oh, hi, Penelope," Oliver said. "Where's Cinda?"

"She didn't want to come. Said it was too cold to watch such a boring game. Guess she just doesn't see just how exciting this game can be!"

"Bright girl," I said softly, causing Oliver to poke me in the ribs with his elbow.

"I hope the snow doesn't cancel the match," Penelope said.

"Weather has only canceled a Quidditch match at Hogwarts twice in the school's history. The only affect this light snow is going to have on the match is decreasing visibility."

"Good to know. I'm really looking forward to this match," she said, as she moved down a row to stand next to Oliver.

A small commotion caused us to look toward the aisle. Charlie's friend Tonks was a few rows down from us, her yellow and black scarf standing out among the red and gold scarves of the Gryffindors, though her hair did match the scarlet of Gryffindor. She was holding onto the banister and apologizing to a couple of second-year students that were ahead of her. I had a feeling she had tripped coming up the stairs.

The second years continued on, and Tonks climbed the last few stairs to our row.

"Hi, Tonks," I greeted.

"Hi, Percy. I promised Charlie I'd come see the match, but I really don't feel like standing over there by myself," she said, indicating the Hufflepuff stands that had about a dozen students in them, and somehow I figured most of those were the Quidditch team. "Do you guys mind if I watch the match with you?"

"Not at all," I replied, as Penelope, Oliver and I all scooted in a bit to make room for Tonks.

"I heard you were there when Hagrid and Charlie let Hope go?" Tonks said. "Did he seem happy to be released?"

"Yeah, I tagged along yesterday," I told her. We had gone after Quidditch practice the night before to release the Griffin whose wing had healed. "Hagrid was able to locate a female Griffin and she was more than willing to accept Hope."

"That's good. Wish I could have gone but I was busy with the chess competition the chess club held."

"How did you do?"

"I came in third."

"Good job, Tonks," Oliver said, reaching past me to shake Tonks hands.

"Thanks."

As we waited for the match to start the three of us chatted, Penelope throwing in comments here and there. By the time Jake Carlton's voice boomed out over the pitch, the snow had picked up, and seeing across to the other side of the pitch was difficult.

"Well, it's good of you all to come and brave the snow to see today's match - Gryffindor vs. Slytherin," Jake announced, the crowd cheering for their respect teams. "Both teams lost their first matches putting them in third and fourth places respectively in the Inter-House championship standings. As the teams come into the pitch, it's good to see the Gryffindor team showing up on time, after the near forfeit of their first match. Let's hope they play better this time out or this could be a very one-sided match."

"And the teams mount their brooms and take their positions. With the sound of the whistle, Madam Hooch throws the Quaffle into the air. Rob Wood immediately snatches it, and ducks under the Slytherin line of chasers. Trace Minton and Carrie Gordon immediately turn around their brooms and give chase, as Vince Valentine ducks a Bludger sent his way by Gryffindor's beater, Jennifer Chadwick."

"The Gryffindor Chasers have an organized charge going toward the Slytherin Hoops, passing the Quaffle from one member to another. Now Trudy Funke takes a shot at one of the side hoops. Slytherin's Keeper Blake Harris dives for it, but comes up short as Gryffindor scores!"

I cheered along with my fellow Gryffindors as play resumed. Slytherin didn't waste much time answering back with a goal of their own, which they earned with a well-timed Bludger sent in Finnigan's direction. The Gryffindor Chasers retaliated by scoring two quick goals.

"Folks it looks as if Charlie Weasley may have spotted the Snitch," Jake Carlton announced. Like a lot of the other people in the stands I immediately scanned the snow filled skies in search of my brother, the action involving the Quaffle momentarily forgotten. "Weasley is definitely intent on something."

Jake gave a groan even as I winced, as two of the Slytherin Chases purposely flew into Charlie.

"And that is uncalled for interference by the Slytherin Chasers. Gryffindor will receive a penalty shot although the move seems to have caused Weasley to lose track of the Snitch," Jake announced.

"Rob Wood will take the penalty shot for Gryffindor. He approaches the Slytherin hoops, Quaffle gripped in his right hand. Looks like he's going to try for the right side goal. Harris moves to cover that hoop, and . . . wait . . . Wood veers toward his left and throws the Quaffle toward the middle hoop. Harris moves for it, but he's too late and Gryffindor scores again!"

"So possession of the Quaffle changes to Slytherin. The three Slytherin Chasers are like a blur as the fly down the pitch toward the Gryffindor hoops. They're passing the Quaffle between them - Valentine has it - he passes to Minton, who ducks underneath a Bludger sent at him by Bill Weasley - now Minton passes to - no wait! The second Bludge collides with the Quaffle ending its momentum toward Chase Carrie Gordon. Trent Jinx swoops in and catches the Quaffle as it falls and now the Gryffindor Chasers are taking the Quaffle in the other direction. As for the Seekers, both Trawla and Weasley are flying around the pitch above the action as they keep an eye out for any sign of the Godlen Snitch."

"Trent is taking a shot at the Slytherin hoops - Blake Harris is able to knock the Quaffle away with his broom - Rob Wood recovers the Quaffle - throws - and he scores. It is now Gryffindor fifty and Slytherin ten. Those Slytherins better get in the game. They're last in the house standings and falling further behind."

The match kept going. First one set of Chasers would be handling the Quaffle and then a well-aimed Bludger by one of the beaters or an intercepted pass would allow possession to change to the other team. Though both Keepers blocked a lot of the shots, Finigan was having more success and an hour later the score was one hundred to thirty in favor of the Gryffindor team. My feet were growing numb in my shoes, and even though my gloved hands were submerged deep within the pockets of my robe, my fingers were still tingling from the cold. The snow was still falling adding more snow to the ground and when a well-aimed Bludger from the Slyterin's Captain, Craig Lawerence, knocked Finnigan form his broom a cloud of snow rose into the air from the impact.

"And Keeper Derek Finnigan gets to his feet," Jake Carlton announced, as around me the crowd let out a collective sigh. "Looks like his robes are going to be white instead of their normal scarlet as he doesn't bother to brush off the snow as he looks for his broom. Meanwhile, Slytherin has scored bringing their score to forty. Three more goals and they can double their score with this match."

I heard soft laughter around me at Jake's last comment. Even from where I was, the unhappy comments from the Slytherins directed at the seventh year Quidditch announcer could be heard.

"Play resumes. With possession of the Quaffle, Rob Wood quickly heads toward the hoops defended by Blake Harris. He ducks a Bludger sent his way - I didn't catch who hit it that time- and then passes the Quaffle to Trudy Funke. Trudy continues on with the Quaffle - nearly collides with her teammate Charlie Weasley as he's concentrating more on finding the Snitch it seems. Having avoiding Weasley, Trudy approaches the hoops - passes to Trent Jinx at the last minute - Trent hurls the Quaffle toward the middle hoop - and it's blocked by Harris. Trudy recovers the Quaffle and quickly throws it toward the side hoop - and it's another goal for Gryffindor!"

"The Slytherin Chasers are now in possession of the Quaffle but wait, I do believe the Snitch had been spotted. Yes folks, Charlie Wesley is definitely in pursuit of the Golden Snitch. He weaves through the Chasers still making their way toward the hoops - ducks a Bludger - and then dives sharply. He pulls up, evening out the broom about ten feet above the ground - and yes folks he has the Snitch in his hand. Gryffindor wins."

The stands erupted in cheers around me, the cold suddenly forgotten in the excitement by everyone. Even as I yelled and clapped with the rest of my fellow Gryffindors though I couldn't help but think how warm the Gryffindor common room was going to feel.


	23. Chapter 23

_**Percy's POV:**_

The end of the first term was rapidly drawing to a close. Most students in the hallways wore a serious expression as they struggled to complete assignments, end of term projects and study for exams. My fellow first years and I were no different. Though a lot of my classes came easy to me, Astronomy was still difficult and Flying and Herbology were the bane of my existence. The struggle I was having in Herbology was why I was currently in the library with Shane Reed, who was second in the class. Shane was helping me study for our end-of-term exam which would be held on Monday.

"It's getting close to curfew," Shane commented, glancing at the clock on the wall. "We should probably call it a night.

Shane closed the book in front of him, the sound seeming to echo through the near empty room. Being Friday night, even with the end of term fast approaching, the library was not a popular spot.

"Thanks for your help," I told Shane as I stood up and started gathering my own stuff.

"No problem."

In a matter of minutes we were leaving the library together. We hadn't gotten too far when I saw Jason down the corridor. He had clearly been waiting and as Shane and I approached the top of a short set of stairs, he pushed himself away from the wall and started toward us. My fellow Gryffindor came to a stop on the top step, right in front of us, blocking our passage.

"Did you want something, Jason?" I asked.

Beside me, Shane attempted to proceed past Jason, who stuck his arm out to block the Hufflepuff's path.

"Where are you going? You've been helping the teacher's pet here knock me out of first place in one of the classes that I am on top of. I'm not sure I should just let you walk away."

"Jason, what is this about? We're going to get in trouble if we're not in our common rooms before curfew."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll be able to weasel yourself out of trouble with McGonagall. You are clearly her favorite," Jason commented.

"I am not. Perhaps if you weren't so bad at transfiguration then she would praise your efforts too."

Jason took the final step up, to stand right in front of me, pulling his wand out of his pocket. Both Shane and I took a step backwards.

"Not so brave without your bodyguard, huh Weasley? What's Wood up to anyway? Doing something for you so you'll let him cheat during the Potions exam. We all know he'd probably have blown us up by now if it weren't for you."

"Neither of us have to cheat," I said, my voice wavering as I took another step back away from Jason as he raised his wand.

Shane took advantage of Jason's focus on me to slip past him. As I watched the Hufflepuff disappear down the corridor, I could only hope that he would find either one of the older students or staff members. Jason didn't take his eyes off me as Shane's footsteps faded into the distance.

"Oh, well. My business is with you anyway, Weasley."

"What do you want?"

"I want you to not do so well on the exams next week. I need to be on top of all my classes when I got home for Christmas break. My parents expect it."

"Then I guess you should get to studying because I don't plan on doing any less than my best on those exams," I told him, my voice sounding a whole lot more confident than I was really feeling.

Jason reached out and grabbed a hold of my robes. I reached up to grab his hands to try to break his hold on me.

"You sure you don't want to try another answer?"

"Not doing my best would be just as bad as cheating," I replied.

Jason let go of me with a shove. I lost my balance, and fell to the ground, a sharp pain going through my head as it made contact with the corner of the plinth of one of the statue lining the corridor. With a groan, I reached up a hand and felt something warm and sticky on my fingers.

"Do you want to change that answer?" Jason asked as he took a few steps to stand beside me.

"Not a chance," I replied, looking past him down the corridor that Shane had disappeared in, hoping to see someone else coming. The corridor remained empty.

The impact of Jason's foot with my ribs had me gasping for breath. I moved my arms down in an attempt to protect myself as he kicked me a few more times.

"So, Weasley, are you still saying you won't miss a few answers on the exams next week for me."

Even if I wanted to reply, I was concentrating too much on trying to draw in a breath due to the pain of my ribs, which almost overshadowed the pain in my head. Looking down the corridor there seemed to have been a fog that had rolled in but there were still no sounds of anyone else approaching.

"So be it, Weasley."

I yelled out, as he kicked me again. Despite my resolve to only use magic in classrooms settings I didn't see anyway out of this situation. As Jason continued kicking me, I reached into the pockets of my robes. My fingers wrapped around the wooden wand, and I withdrew it.

"Protego," I said, producing the shield charm that I had used in the library to protect myself.

Jason's foot made contact with the invisible barrier and I saw him stumble backwards as darkness crept in around me.

I was aware of voices around me though I couldn't sort out what they were saying. I felt pressure against my temple, and every breath hurt. Not sure what was going on, I contemplated saying the incantation for the shield charm again but didn't feel as though I had the strength to do so.

"Bill, I think he's coming around," I heard a semi-familiar voice say.

I tried to open my eyes, the light seeming to hurt my eyes at first. I heard a groan from somewhere.

"I can't feel my legs."

I recognized that voice. Jason was still nearby. I felt panic rush through me and wanted to get away. I forced my eyes open and started trying sitting up only to feel a hand holding me down.

"Easy, Percy," I heard Bill say. Looking in the direction of the voice, I saw my eldest brother hovering beside me. "Madame Pomfrey is on her way. Just stay still for now."

I nodded, regretting the movement as a wave of pain went through my head.

~_If Bill was here, I was safe.~_

"What happened, Percy?" Bill asked me.

I tried to remember what had happened. Shane and I had left the library, wanting to reach our respective common room before curfew and then . . . I couldn't remember after that.

"I don't know. I can't remember," I said feeling panic rising. ~_Why couldn't I remember? ~_

"Okay, don't worry about it," Bill replied gently.

"What happened here?"

That question was from Professor McGonagall. I started to move my head in the direction of her voice and stopped as it only caused more pain.

McGonagall's question wasn't answered right away as I heard the voice of Madam Pomfrey ask how someone was. I presumed the someone was Jason.

I heard an unfamiliar voice telling her that Jason was saying that he couldn't feel his legs. "I think Percy is hurt worse though," the person continued. "He was unconscious when I got here though I think he may be awake now."

"Bill, how is he?" Madam Pomfrey asked.

"He's awake, but he's having trouble remembering what happened."

"I'll be there shortly," Madam Pomfrey answered.

"Eric, what do you know about this?" I heard McGonagall ask.

I didn't hear Eric's response. I started to let my eyes close.

"No, Percy, keep your eyes open for me," my older brother told me.

I did as he requested, finding myself now looking into Bill's concerned face.

"I'm cold," I told him, not sure where the sudden realization of how cold it seemed came from.

Bill removed his own robes, and draped them over me.

_**Bill's POV**_:

I stood in the main room of the infirmary. Not far away, Percy lay in a curtained off bed, Charlie sitting by his side. Madam Pomfrey had healed his injuries and said my little brother would make a full recovery. A few beds down, Jason Goyle was hidden behind another curtain. Like my brother he would make a full recovery.

Jason was claiming that Percy pushed him down the steps. Given that my brother still couldn't recall what happened after he and Shane left the library, we only had Jason's word to go off of though we had Shane's account of Jason waiting in the corridor and blocking his and Percy's ways.

I could hear voices coming from Madam Pomfrey's office. I knew they were the voices of Pomfrey, McGonagall, Dumbledore, Jason's parents as well as my own parents. Unfortunately I couldn't understand what was being said. Would both kids be expelled or just one of them?

The not knowing was driving me crazy. I knew Percy would never purposely do anything to hurt someone and it was clear that Jason had been bullying him before this had all happened. The sound of the door opening caused me to look in the direction of the office.

"Do you think this is a wise course of action?" Professor McGonagall was asking as she followed Professor Dumbledore out of the office.

"I believe it is our only way to have all sides of this story," Dumbledore replied. His eyes fell on me. "Ah, Mr. Weasley, just the person I wanted to talk to."

"Yes, Professor," I replied, feeling nervous.

"I need you to try something for me," Dumbledore said in his easy measured tone that revealed absolutely none of his feelings. He might as well be lecturing a class. "We need to hear your brother's account of what happened."

"But he doesn't remember. Charlie and I've both tried to get him to talk to us."

"Yes, talking but you have another method of retrieving those events that doesn't require words. I believe his amnesia about the events is his minds way of dealing with things."

I felt uneasy about the suggestion. I hadn't purposely tried reading someone since the last time I had tried to read Percy.

"I couldn't even do it the last time."

"Explain to your brother what is going on this time," Dumbledore said. "I'm convinced that your brother purposely shut you out the last time. That as you are a natural at legilimency your brother is a natural at occlumency. I had planned on discussing the subject with your parents and Percy after the holiday break. Given the situation now seems to be the better time as I believe you should be the one to talk to your brother. I will discuss matters with your parents once things have calmed down some."

I hesitated to reply unsure of what I should do. On one hand we needed answers. On the other hand, hadn't Percy been through enough tonight?

"The choice is yours, Bill," Dumbledore said calmly.

"How do we know he isn't making this stuff up?" Jason's father practically shouted as I finished my account of the account of the night's events that I had read from Percy's mind, this time with my brother knowing my intent. "We have only you word that this kid even knows Legilimency!"

"Mr. Weasley is of age and if it's proof you need, Marcus, think of a number from zero to 10,000," Dumbledore replied calmly.

"This is ridiculous."

"Afraid to find out the truth?"

"Oh, fine," Marcus Goyle said, his gaze changing to me. "I've got one."

I felt Dumbledore's keen gaze fall on me. "Mr. Weasley, what number is Mr. Goyle thinking of."

Taking a deep breath, I cleared my mind of my own thoughts. Reaching out with my mind, I consciously looked for the number Mr. Goyle was thinking of.

"5,234," I replied a brief moment later.

From the expression on Mr. Goyle's face we all knew I had gotten it right.

"Satisfied?" Dumbledore asked, his gaze moving from me to Mr. Goyle.

"Yes."

"Then, given the accounts that I have received of the events, I believe that Mr. Weasley's actions were purely defensive. Though I regret your son's injuries, it seems that Jason started the altercation and willfully used force against a fellow student. For the safety of the other students, I am therefore forced to expel Mr. Goyle from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You of course do have the right to appeal that decision with the school board."

"That won't be necessary," Mr. Goyle said, his arm going around his wife. "We will make arrangements to leave in the morning."

"That will be acceptable."

The Goyle's left, leaving Professor Dumbledore, McGonagall and my parents in the office with me.

"We'll be taking Percy home with us tomorrow," my mother said.

From the looks on the others' faces, her announcement surprised them as much as it did me.

"Now Molly, I do believe that may be a bit drastic," my father said, breaking the silence that had fallen.

"There is nothing drastic about it, Arthur! It's obvious he isn't safe here!"

"Tonight was a regrettable incident that the staff and I will address to see that it does not happen again," Dumbledore said calmly. "While the decision is of course yours, I think withdrawing Percy from the school would be ill advised. It's clear that he has the makings of being a powerful wizard. Proper training is essential."

"There are other schools," Mom countered.

"Schools that we know nothing about," Dad told her. "Molly, generations of both of our families have gone to Hogwarts. I don't think we should pull Percy out over this one incidence."

"It hasn't been one incident! I want him home, Arthur. I want him safe!"

"May I make a suggestion?" Professor McGonagall said, speaking up calmly from her spot by Madame Pomfrey's desk. When the three other adults' eyes were on her, she continued. "There is only a week left to the term. Perhaps Percy should go home early. It will give the teachers a chance to discuss the incidence and how to prevent it from happening again as well as time for Percy to recover both physically and emotionally. The two of you can also take the time to discuss this matter in length between the two of you," she said, with a nod to my parents. "Emotions are running high right now and this isn't a decision that should be made on the spot. If you should decide not to pull Percy from the school, which I hope to be the case as he is a very gifted child, then he can take his exams at the beginning of next term."

Dumbledore nodded. " I believe Professor McGonagall's suggestion is quite a wise one. Will you accept it?"

My parents looked at one another. They seemed to have a discussion silently. Finally dad looked back toward the headmaster.

"We will give you our decision the day after Christmas. Is that acceptable?"

"Quite acceptable," Dumbledore replied.

I wondered if even discussing the incident would change my mother's mind, as protective as she had always been with Percy.

"And Bill, we will discuss the earring when you get home," my mother added, as the three of us left the office together.

_**Percy's POV:**_

I sat cross-legged on Charlie's bed, the book given to me by my parents for Christmas sitting on the bed in front of me. I had planned on reading at least a chapter before dinner but my mind was busy with other things.

Upon coming home early from Hogwarts, my parents had let me stay in Charlie and Bill's room, figuring I needed space from my younger brother. I had spent most of that first week in the room, not wanting to answer any prying questions. I was more than aware that my parents spent most of that week when they thought none of us kids were around arguing about whether to pull me from Hogwarts or not. I was torn between whether I wanted them to or not. Part of me would be happy to be away from there. Yet, part of me wanted to stay. I didn't want to lose Oliver as a friend, as well as wanting to learn more about magic. Then there was this Occlumency thing that Bill had explained to me a bit that they seemed to think I had. I hadn't had much time to talk to Bill about it the night he first mentioned it but I had accepted it; I trusted my brother. Though Dumbledore had given me a book about it before I had left Hogwarts with my parents, I still had questions. Dumbledore had promised to answer any questions I might have but how would he do that if I didn't go back to Hogwarts. Even after talking to Bill on his return, the fact that I was still sharing a room with him temporarily, as Charlie had volunteered to bunk with Ron during the holiday break, made it easy to do so, I still had questions.

My parents had finally come to the agreement that whether I went back or not was up to me. I still hadn't given them an answer but I knew I was running out of time to make my decision. Dumbledore was expecting notice of the choice tomorrow.

I looked up as the door opened. Bill walked into the room, his chess set that he and Charlie had been using in his hand. He walked over to his desk and placed it on the beat-up wooden surface before turning to me.

"Everything okay there, Kiddo?"

I shrugged my shoulders in reply.

Bill walked over to the bed and sat down facing me.

"Want to talk?"

I looked up to meet his gaze. "I don't know what to do, Bill?"

"About going back Hogwarts?"

I nodded. "Why did they leave the decision up to me?"

"Because they're trying to do what is best for you, Perce. They don't want to force you to go back if you're not ready to face it. If you're not comfortable there, it won't do you any good."

"But I don't know what to do. I'm scared to go back. What if I hurt someone else?"

"Percy, Jason getting hurt wasn't your fault. You were defending yourself. You didn't mean to hurt anyone but sometimes things like that happen. Like Gryffindor's first Quidditch match. The last thing I would ever do is to do something to hurt Charlie or any of you however, the first Bludger that hit Charlie was hit by me and though someone else might get hurt during the course of a future match, I'm still on the team."

"But this was different? It wasn't during a game."

"True, but Jason falling down the steps was an accident. You had no idea that would happen when you cast the shield charm and Percy, the more you know about your powers the less likely someone is inadvertently going to get hurt."

"So you think I should go back?"

"I believe you could learn a lot being at Hogwarts and if our discussions are any indication you've got a lot of questions that you need answers too."

I nodded. Taking a deep breath I asked the one question that I had been wondering since I left Hogwarts.

"What are the others saying? Do they think I hurt Jason on purpose?"

Bill sighed. "I'm not going to lie to you. Rumors were flying left and right - some close to the truth and some way out there. It was so bad that Dumbledore addressed the whole school before we left. Everyone knows what's happened, Perce, and yes some may blame you but you can't let those few people control your life. I'm on your side as is Charlie and Oliver and many of the other students in our house. It won't be easy at first but you won't face it alone."

I nodded again. I knew what I had to do. "Bill, could you help me study Herbology after dinner. I'm going to have some exams to take when I get back to school."

Bill smiled. "Of course I will," he said, reaching out and ruffling my hair. "Let's go tell Mom and Dad your decision."

I nodded feeling as if a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders.


	24. Chapter 24

**Percy's POV:**

I stood in King's Cross Station waiting as my older brothers finished saying good-byes to our parents before returning to Hogwarts. My three younger brothers were standing in a group whispering and pointing as other people walked by their spot. I was pretty sure I didn't want to know what they were up to. Ginny stood next to my father, holding his hand while first Charlie and then Bill hugged my mother good-bye.

"Don't worry, Mom, I'm going to keep a close eye on him," I heard Bill tell my mother softly as he hugged her. I knew exactly who the him he was referring to and for once I wasn't going to mind having Bill play the overprotective older brother. I was somehow more worried about going back to Hogwarts this time than I had been going at the beginning of the year.

Despite having already hugged my mother good-bye, she still pulled me close again after Bill had stepped aside.

"If you want to come home just let us know and we'll come get you right away," my mother told me as she hugged me tightly.

If she had said that at the beginning of the school year, I would have taken the offer in a heartbeat. Now though I had mixed feelings about the offer. As much as I didn't want to go back and face my peers after what had happened I also wanted to learn as much as I could about magic and how to control those abilities. The simple truth was that I had hurt somebody by casting a spell. I hadn't set out to do it, and if I had known Jason was going to get hurt because of my actions, I wouldn't have cast the shield charm but ultimately it was still my fault that he had gotten hurt. Despite what anyone told me, I still felt guilty about that and I never wanted to feel this way again. I was determined to go back to school, learn all I could, follow the rules that had been put into place for our protection, and become somebody that my parents could be proud of. I didn't tell my mother any of that though.

"I'll keep that in mind," I told her, as I hugged her back.

It seemed like a long time before my mother finally released me at my father's quiet reminder that the train was about to leave. As my mother stepped back, I saw her reach up to wipe tears away. I knew that if my mother had her way I wouldn't be returning to Hogwarts. I saw my father lean down and whisper something in her ear as he slipped his arm across her shoulders.

With one final quick wave, I turned from my parents and started walking toward the waiting scarlet train. I had only taken a couple of steps when Bill slipped his arm across my shoulders. I didn't attempt to pull away from him, grateful for my older brother's presence and support as we boarded to train bound for Hogwarts.

As Bill and I started walking down the aisle, Charlie having spotted his friends in the other direction when we had stepped on board, we could no longer walk side by side as students were moving in both directions. As I felt people staring at me as I walked down the aisle though, I was once again thankful that Bill had one hand on my shoulder as he walked behind me. I think that if it wasn't for him being behind me that I would have turned around and fled the train, especially when the whispering started as the kids started to notice me.

"I'm right behind you, Perce. Everything is going to be okay," Bill whispered from behind me.

I couldn't help but wonder if he could sense my uneasiness or if he was using his own abilities to read my thoughts. It didn't take me long to decide that I really didn't care.

After what seemed like ages, I finally spotted the Wood brothers sitting together in a compartment. I had gotten several owls from Oliver over the break and was glad to know that he still wanted to be my friend after everything that had happened. Upon spotting me, Oliver stood up and met me part way, giving me a quick brotherly hug as he reached me.

"Glad you're coming back, Percy," Oliver told me. "Hogwarts wouldn't be he same without you."

"I get the feeling that not everyone feels that way," I said, as I followed him back to the compartment that Rob was still sitting in. I could still feel eyes on me.

"It'll blow over," Oliver said, his voice full of confidence in what he said.

"I hope you're right," I replied, slipping past him to take a seat by the window as our older brothers sat across from us.

As we waited for the train to depart the station, more people passed by. Quite a few of them, even ones whom I didn't know by name, cast glances my way. Marcus and Darin walked by. Marcus opened his mouth about to say something, and then spotting Bill and Rob in the compartment with us, closed it again and kept on walking. Emily walked by, paused long enough to greet Oliver and me and then continued on telling us that she was going to find Ellen.

Finally, the parade of students came to an end and with a shrill blow of its whistle, the Hogwarts Express pulled out of King's Cross Station and began the long journey toward the school.

The whispering didn't seem to have stopped by the time we had all gathered in The Great Hall for the evening meal. I felt exactly as I had walking onto the stage to don the Sorting Hat as I walked into the half-filled hall that evening. Emily and Ellen had now joined Oliver and I as we found seats at the Gryffindor table. Not far away, the rest of my dorm mates, Sky, Collin, and Jake sat in a group. Collin and Jake didn't even glance my way, but every so often Sky would cast a hateful look in my direction. I knew for sure that Sky blamed me for Jason's expulsion from the school and it made me wonder how many others did too.

I didn't have time to wonder long though as soon Dumbledore was standing at the podium on stage welcoming us back for the second half of the school year. The headmaster spoke of high expectations for all of us as we finished out the school year and no mention of the incident before the holiday break was said. Still, I couldn't help but feel eyes on me as the meal began. I knew the incident had not been forgotten by my peers.

I felt a wave of relief as the dismissal for the evening was finally given. I anticipated finding some peace in the safety of the first year dormitory. As Oliver and I walked into the dorm room, I could feel the icy reception from our other dorm mates. Sky immediately drew the curtains on his four poster bed and disappeared behind them. I didn't need him to voice his feelings to know he blamed me for Jason not being here. His silent accusation was somehow worse.

"Hey, guys," Oliver said, addressing Collin and Jake who were both sitting on Collin's bed. "Ready to hit the school books tomorrow?" he asked easily, in an attempt to break the tension in the room.

Both of our classmates offered quick replies even as they quicky became busy with other things. It was clear that my presence was making them uneasy. I turned toward my own bed, and without bothering to change into my pajamas climbed into it. Following Sky's lead, I pulled the curtains closed plunging myself into darkness.

Though I had often felt isolated from my peers the first half of the year, I had a feeling that isolation was going to be worse now. Not only were academics going to set me a part from my classmates, but I could also sense the general unease and fear that they were all feeling. It was as if they were all worried that I might do something to them and while that feeling would probably spare me from some teasing, I knew it wasn't going to help me fit in.

Still, I wasn't alone. I had my brothers on my side. Oliver was still standing by me as was Emily. It wasn't as if I had been making a lot of friends before this had all happened. However, I had a feeling that just fitting in wasn't going to be possible anymore. Just like I was the odd man out in my family, I was never going to be like the rest of my classmates.

I laid there in the darkness listening to the sounds on the other side of the curtains as Oliver, Collin and Jake got ready for bed. There wasn't much talking that went on, and it wasn't long before the room had fallen completely silence. Still I laid awake, unable to fall asleep as I wondered what the next day was going to hold and trying to figure out how I was ever going to make it to the end of the school year.

"Percy, are you asleep yet?" a whispered voice asked breaking the silence.

Sitting up I found the break in the curtains and pushed them open. Oliver was there standing by my bed. "Not yet," I replied, although the answer was hardly necessary at this point.

"Things are going to get easier," Oliver told me, the confidence in his voice making it easy to believe the words. "We just need to take it one day at a time and before you know it we're going to be back on the Hogwarts Express heading home, year one of school just a thing of the past."

"That seems like such a long time."

"One day at a time," he repeated, reaching out a hand to briefly touch my shoulder before he turned toward his own bed. "Good night, Percy."

"Night, Oliver," I replied, letting the curtain fall close again as I laid back down.

I closed my eyes and pictured the Hogwarts Express pulling out of Hogsmeade station come the end of the year. With that goal in my mind, I closed my eyes and let sleep claim me, I'd worry about tomorrow when it finally arrived.


	25. Epilogue

**AN: Because it's taken me so long to actually compete this story, I figured I'd just post the last three chapters together. Thanks to all of you who've stuck around for the ride. Would love to hear your thoughts on the story now that it's completed. Enjoy!**

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**Percy's POV:**

"Well we made it," Oliver said as he flopped down next to the window in one of the compartments on the Hogwarts Express.

The school year had come to an end and we were boarding the Hogwarts Express in Hogsmeade to head home for summer break. I had passed all of my exams as had the rest of my fellow first year Gryffindors. Come September we would all be coming back to the school to start our second year.

"I for one am glad it's over," I commented, sitting down across from Oliver. The year had been anything but easy. Even after the whisperings in my presence had ended around mid-January, I still had been aware that my peers viewed me differently. I could only hope the distance of the summer and the remainder of the school year could push the events with Jason Goyle further from their minds.

"I'll second that," Emily said, as she settled on the seat next Oliver.

"It'll be nice not being the youngest students next year," Shane commented as he settled on the seat next to me.

Shane and I had become friends after we had returned to Hogwarts from the Christmas break. It had started out as the Hufflepuff inquiring on how I was when we got back to Hogwarts. Given the looks I was receiving and whispers that occurred in my presence, it was a nice change. After that he had continued to help me with Herbology. Little by little, we started spending more and more time together, until it didn't seem out of place to see Shane hanging out with Oliver, Emily and me.

"It'll be nice to know our way around and not spend half of our time lost," Emily added.

"Well, I'm going to busy over the summer," Oliver commented. "I need to make sure I get some Quidditch practice in so I'm ready for tryouts next year. I want to get on the team, especially as we'll be defending the Quidditch cup."

Though Hufflepuff had won the overall house competition for the year, Gryffindor had managed to edge Ravenclaw for the Quidditch title by ten points. It was quite a feat given the team's rough start. Needless to say, Charlie had been flying high ever since they had won the cup. In fact, Charlie might have missed the train this morning if Bill hadn't dragged him away from admiring the cup in the school's award case.

"Do you think your brother will mind practicing some when I come to visit later in the summer, Perce?" Oliver asked. He was coming around midsummer to spend two weeks with my family.

"Charlie lives in breaths Quidditch. Somehow I don't think that will be a problem."

"Great," Oliver said. "I'm glad I get to come visit this summer. Rob will start his job in Paris the week before. It'll be weird not having him around the house. I have a feeling I'll be looking forward to getting away from the house for a bit at that point."

Rob Wood was going to be a Healer. After finishing a three-week course at St. Mungo's in London, he would be heading to Paris to work at the hospital there. Oliver wasn't the only one that would be having an older brother leave home. Bill had gotten a position with Gringott's as a Curse Breaker. Though he would be starting his new job a few days after returning, he had as of yet not made plans to move out of our family home. I had a feeling that would change once he got settled in his new job.

"I'm looking forward to you coming too," I told him, though I refrained from adding because I often felt so isolated within my family.

Our conversation continued, as we discussed plans for the summer and pondered about what the next school year would bring. As the train started moving along the track taking us away from Hogwarts and toward King's Crossing Station, Oliver took out a deck of cards and the four of us were soon engrossed in a game of Exploding snaps.

It wasn't long before Charlie stopped by, Tonks, her hair a light shade of purple today, standing behind him, poked his head into the compartment. After making sure everything was okay and exchanging a few words with Oliver about Quidditch, he left us to our game. As he walked away, I noticed that my older brother was holding Tonks hand. The two of them were a couple now, a fact that had become well known after Bill had caught them snogging in an empty classroom while Charlie was supposed to be on patrol duty back in February. Charlie had griped about how Bill's lecture had been worse than Professor McGonagall's.

We continued the game. Bill and Rob poked their heads into the compartment toward the end of the game. Though it was a tight fit, they both joined us for the second game. I found myself glancing at my brother quite often as the game progressed. I was realizing just how important my older brother was in my life and how empty it would seem at the house when Bill moved out. Not to mention, I would be losing part of my support system at school the next year. Both Bill and Charlie had been there for me through all the trials of the year, even if I had felt they had been part of the problem at the beginning.

There wasn't anything I could do to keep him in my life though. Eventually, one by one each of my siblings and I would graduate Hogwarts and move on. I also realized that being compared to my two older brothers wasn't such a bad thing. They were both great people and I wanted to be like them as much as I could. Maybe I wouldn't ever be a great Quidditch player like Charlie but I could be a Prefect like both of them and possibly even a Head Boy like Bill.

_~I'll make my own mark on the school, just like George, Fred, Ron and Ginny will after me, _~ I thought, as I took my turn in the game. For now though, I planned on enjoying what little time I had with Bill before he started his job and his role in my life changed.

After all everything he had told me at the beginning of the year had come true. I had made some friends by just being myself. I had found a place where I fit. Granted it seemed like a small circle of people who accepted me for whom I was but maybe that wasn't such a bad thing. I didn't need to be liked by everyone. I had a family who loved me and had made some friends. Everything was going to be okay.


End file.
